Secrets of the Everfree: Sequel to The Seventh Element
by adoptpetz
Summary: Thestrals have returned to Equestria, but some still aren't willing to accept them. Meanwhile, Acrylic prepares to begin a new life with Torchwood. They'll face hardships, discover dangerous secrets, and begin the most terrifying quest of all- starting a family. Follow her on a journey of self discovery as she finds out what it really means to be a thestral.
1. Chapter 1: Engaged

**Chapter 1**

**Engaged**

**A/N: School's out, so to celebrate, I'm finally bringing Acrylic back! This is a sequel to my fanfiction **_**The Seventh Element**_**. I **_**highly**_** recommend you read that first if you haven't already just so you aren't completely lost. Unlike the last one, it's almost completely made from my own writing (which means that it's probably going to end up twice as long, now that I'm not limited to the show's script). I did the cover art myself this time, too. I need to apologize in advance; my romance scenes are still rubbish.**

**Also, sorry for the long wait- I wanted to wait for the Season 4 Finale to work it into my storyline. I'll be writing this in real-time, unlike the last one, so I won't be posting every other day like with The Seventh Element. I already finished that when I started posting, but I have been urged by multiple people to get this up ASAP. I'll update whenever I can. Enough about me. Enjoy the story!**

"Torchwood? Have you seen my hat?" I called.

"You hung it on the easel again," came the reply. I trod quickly down the stairs to see if this was true. Indeed, the worn, purple plaid beret was hanging from the corner of the wooden frame. I sighed in relief and set it over my deep blue mane. I was always losing things, but I didn't often misplace my hat. Rarity had given that to me. She was one of my closest friends, as well as my neighbor; my art supply store, Art Life, was just up the road from the Carousel Boutique. While I kept a stock of art supplies, I'd started accepting commissions for business fliers, posters, or any other kind of painting my customers could think of.

The hat now situated on my head, I walked out of the sun-drenched studio and into the main shop. Torchwood was propped against the counter, browsing a magazine. I smiled at the sight of the stallion. He was very dark brown, and extremely tall- about Princess Luna's height. He had a narrow muzzle but a broad, squared jaw line, and coal colored eyes. His mane was jet black with mere wisps of blond emerging from the void, all brushed over to the side. He'd let his tail grow out a bit lately, but I kind of liked it although it was considered a little long for stallions around these parts. Really, it only brushed his hocks. His cutie mark depicted a flaming torch, tinged with green on the edges. That was the color of his thestral fire.

That's what we are. Thestrals. Ponies with dragon wings. A thousand years ago, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna defeated thestrals, who had turned evil, and thought them extinct. Now we had returned- with permission from the royal sisters, of course. It was an interesting return, to say the least. Torchwood temporarily turned evil and nearly conquered Equestria, I almost died, and we somehow summoned a seventh Element of Harmony... it was weird. But that's a whole different story. Now we were starting a new story, and a new life. Last week, Torchwood asked me to marry him. Of course I said yes.

He looked up with a smile as I entered, and kissed me over the counter. I returned the gesture, and looked down at the catalogue beneath his hooves. It advertised wedding invitations of every color and style imaginable. "Find anything good?" I asked.

"You could do better," he shook his head.

"Too much work," I dismissed. "Not that Graphite isn't keeping me busy enough with all his new requests."

"He's ordering again?"

"Sure is. Almost twice as much as he used to." Graphite Sketch was a very prestigious artist from Vanhoover. I'd met him at my first Grand Galloping Gala the same night I met Torchwood. Back then, Torch was working for Graphite. That earth pony did everything in his power to make his life miserable. He could get away with it, too. He'd found out that Torchwood was a thestral long ago, and used this fact to blackmail him. Now that the whole world knew about thestrals, it didn't really matter. He'd tried to start a romantic relationship with me, but as it turned out, his butler was the one for me. When we got together, Torchwood quit his job to come work for me in Ponyville. Spiteful Graphite had stopped placing orders with me after that. But ever since the thestrals made a formal return, we'd settled our differences.

"I suppose that's a good thing," Torchwood finally said. "You know, I'm thinking of asking him to be my best colt."

"Really?" I exclaimed. I knew Torchwood said at the last Summer Sun Celebration that he'd forgiven Graphite, but after all that earth pony had put him through, I wasn't sure just how far that extended. Torchwood simply nodded at my outburst, somewhat amused. I smiled back. "Good for you." I now represented the Element of Forgiveness. I was all for it.

"And you? Have you decided on your bridesmaids yet?"

"I'd have thought that would be a given," I laughed. There was no way I could choose between my six closest friends. I'd want them all up there with me. And Blaze would be our ring bearer, of course. Blaze was my little dragon friend. I had been very close to his mother, Ignition. When she died, I swore to her that I'd take care of her two boys, Blaze and Garble. Garble was old enough to take care of himself, and rejected the idea of staying in Ponyville. He went back to the wild dragon flock to rejoin his friends. Still, Blaze, Heckley, Torchwood and I visited them as often as we could. (Heckley was my pet snake.)

"Fair enough," Torchwood said, turning back to the booklet. "What's our color scheme again?"

"It's just like our flames: green, orange and white," I answered. "Rarity keeps complaining the colors are too hard to work with. She's been obsessing over our wedding day, analyzing everything down to the last detail."

"I must admire her persistence," Torchwood chuckled.

"By the way, we both think it would be a good idea to add blue to the color scheme. It's a brilliant compliment to orange, and might make things a bit easier on Rarity. What do you think?"

"That sounds just fine. You always did look good in blue," he nuzzled me.

"It might open up new possibilities for the stationary, too," I noted, glancing back down at his catalogue.

"Well, you take a look and see what you can find," Torchwood said. "I have to get these orders delivered."

"Are you sure you're up for that? We can always set the mail service to work."

"I'm fine. Just between us, I don't quite trust the mail mare."

"I suppose living with wall-eyes can't be easy," I agreed. I knew he was speaking of Ditzy Doo, the gray pegasus mail mare with crossed eyes. She did her best, but wasn't always entirely reliable. "Alright. But be back in time for lunch."

"Can I treat you to lunch at the Hayburger?"

"Sounds good. I'll go pick up Blaze right after I finish here."

"Don't work yourself too hard," he joked, picking a bundle off the ground from beside the door. His large wings unfurled, and he took off.

I halfheartedly poked around the magazine before getting bored. He was right. These designs all looked tacky. I moved it behind the counter along with another stack of similar catalogues. Torchwood proposed at the Summer Sun Celebration in front of most of Canterlot. Since then, we'd been getting all kinds of wedding magazines.

I went back into the small kitchenette at the back of the house, and pulled out the snake food Fluttershy had given me. It didn't take much for her to fall in love with my pet. He was waiting for his lunch upstairs. I still had a few hours before Torchwood got back, but it was best to take care of him now.

I found my snake curled up on top of the wardrobe where he liked to perch. It was still a mystery to me how he managed to wind his way up there, but I assumed he somehow used the neighboring coat hooks to make the transition. He got up and down just fine, so I didn't really concern myself with it. I whistled for his attention, and he groggily looked down at me. I set his food on the chair, and left him to it. He didn't move until I was gone. By the clamoring he caused once I left the room, I could tell he'd been hungry.

Now I could finally return to my work. I had a couple of landscapes for Graphite left to do. I only had a week left until the end of the month, and while that sounded like a lot of time, it really wasn't. Oils took _forever_ to dry. I didn't want to rush through these, but I would have to use a faster drying paint on the under layers. It would produce the same effect for what I had in mind. I'd just set everything up; the canvases were primed, my paints were organized, and I had all the brushes laid out. I selected the fan brush to cover more surface area. I'd just dipped it in the goldenrod when the bells at the front door jangled, alerting me of a customer. I quietly growled in irritation. Timing.

"Hello? Anypony home?" Oh, it was okay. That sweet sing-song voice belonged to the one and only Rarity.

"Back here," I called, setting the brush back on the palette. Rarity met me halfway, looking back from the counter as I came around. "Hey, Rarity. How are you?"

"A bit frazzled, honestly. Come along. I need you at the boutique."

"What for?"

"I've got your new wedding dress prepared!"

"Another one? Isn't this your third edit?"

"Well, yes. I haven't quite perfected it yet."

"Rarity, your work is always beautiful. You got Cadence's wedding gown right off the bat, remember?"

"That was Cadence's wedding," Rarity protested. "Yes, she may be royalty, but she isn't my best friend. Yours must be flawless!"

"So what was wrong with the last one?"

"It just wasn't... _you_. I must admit, I've been having trouble coming up with anything ever since those wings of yours showed up. It's a whole new side to you!" I wouldn't admit it to her, but I had been feeling a little guilty for hiding who I was since our return.

"So do it like you would if I didn't have the wings."

"They're part of you, darling. No need to hide them anymore. It just poses some new creative challenges, is all. Now, I hope you'll be pleased with the results. And you _must_ tell me what changes to make. No more of that indecisive nonsense."

"Well, since you mentioned it, Torchwood and I were going to add blue to the color scheme after all. I don't know how that's going to affect what you've already got."

"Oh!" Rarity froze on the spot.

"Did we completely ruin you? I'm sorry. I know how hard you've been working..."

"No, no, darling, this is perfect! I just need to make a few minor changes... don't go anywhere. I'll be right back!" With that, she galloped back the way she came, and I returned inside with a chuckle. I was done with the first two layers before she came back to retrieve me.

We'd arrived at her shop just down the road, and the doors swung open. Like a grand centerpiece, what I realized must be the wedding dress, set at the center of the shop. I suddenly realized what Rarity meant. The other gowns were beautiful, but this one topped them all. It was silky and slim before flaring out into a flowing skirt. Its train was just long enough to brush the floor. The skirt had four layers, each stacked like a cape to the one above, the bottom being a dark blue, the next a little lighter, the third very light, and the top ultimately white. A crimped navy hem closed each layer off. A similar crimped ribbon twirled around the entire body, adding a nice decorative touch. The design for the wide slots for my wings had improved dramatically; they no longer sagged, and were outlined in the thick, rich blue. It looked like they were held in place by stiff wires inside the hem. The veil that sat atop the mannequin's head was long, rimmed at the front with a small ring of blue and white flowers sitting atop a ruffled blue base. There was no way she had 'edited' the last design. It was entirely blue and white, so she must have used the last hour to put a whole new one together.

"Well? What do you think?" Rarity probed, beaming at her latest creation.

"It's... gorgeous..." I breathed.

"That's what you said about the last two," she pouted.

"No, not that kind of gorgeous. This one's... _really_ gorgeous."

"Well, let's have you try it on, then. I must admit, I'm quite thankful you did decide to add blue. It makes my job a lot easier."

"About that," I said, taking the dress, "this means that we'll need a whole new flower arrangement. Any suggestions?"

"Oh, darling, I have tried and tried to come up with something, but I'm afraid flowers just aren't my area of expertise. I hate to back out on you, but I think you would be best off hiring a true professional for that."

"That's probably a good idea," I admitted. Rarity had offered to be in charge of the decorations, but she'd been having a lot of trouble with the flowers. "I do think the blue and orange will go wonderfully together, as long as we can get the right colors to complement each other. That's hard to do with flowers, sometimes."

"Quite right. Perhaps Twilight knows some way to fix that. You may want to consult with her, as well."

"Good idea." I finished slipping into the dress, and sidestepped back out into the shop. Rarity looked away from whatever she'd been jotting down to look at me. I could see the prideful glow return to her face, but she extinguished it instantly. She wanted my input first. I almost rolled my eyes.

"What do you think?"

"Oh, Rarity, this is the one!" It was perfect! Rarity finally allowed herself the liberty of a victorious expression. Her eyes sparkled just looking at her creation.

"Yes, it is much better than the last one. Is there anything you want changed? Anything at all?"

"Now that you mention it..." I pretended to rub my chin in thought.

"Yes?" Rarity instantly took up her notepad.

"Nothing," I teased, giving her a grateful hug. Rarity finally realized the joke and let out a short burst of laughter herself.

"Alright... if you're sure..."

"I am. No more changing it," I warned, pointing a hoof at her.

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye," she vowed, performing the hoof motions that went along with the rhyme.

"Okay," I nodded. Satisfied, I returned to the stall to change back out of the gown.

"But now, what do I do with the hair?" I heard Rarity mutter to herself. "Do you mind if I play with it for a little while?" I peeped back out the door.

"Let's worry about it later, okay? The wedding isn't for another two months, but I do have a lunch date with Torchwood in about an hour."

"Oh, very well. Though I don't understand why you keep putting everything off. If I was the mare getting married, I would want everything to be settled as soon as possible."

"Too much stress," I answered, gently pulling the gown back over my head. "I don't want gray hairs in my mane before the wedding."

"Fair enough. Shall I keep the dress here for you?"

"Would you mind? Torchwood's been coming over a lot more lately, and I don't want to risk him seeing it before the wedding."

"It's bad luck for the groom to see you in your wedding gown before the wedding," Rarity understood, levitating the dress and sliding it back over the mannequin.

"I don't believe in that superstitious nonsense," I rolled my eyes. "I just want him to be surprised!"

"If you say so."

"I do. Now, I've got to go. Blaze is still over at the Golden Oaks Library. I've got to pick him up for lunch."

"Is Spike still giving him lessons on how to be your 'number one assistant?'" Rarity chuckled.

"Yes," I smiled, "which is pretty ironic. They haven't actually been over to Art Life at all together, except to meet up."

"I'm sure they'll get to that point eventually," Rarity assured.

"Oh, I don't mind a bit. I think it's great that they've been spending so much time together. It's good for Spike to have someone his own age- and species."

"That's true. Twilight is an exemplary caretaker, but it isn't the same."

"I hope I can do as good of a job as she does," I sighed.

"You've already done more for that dragon than anypony else could have," Rarity assured. "Speaking of whom, you should probably go get him. It's well past noon; he must be hungry."

"You're right. Thanks again, Rarity. See you later!" Realizing I'd spent more time than I'd meant, I kept up a brisk pace all the way to the library.


	2. Chapter 2: The Hayburger

**Chapter 2**

**The Hayburger**

I lightly rapped on the library door as I trotted inside, just to let Twilight know I was here. She looked up from her book, and cast me a warm smile. "Hi, Acrylic!"

"Hey, Twilight. Is Blaze still here?"

"In the kitchen with Spike," she answered, nodding towards the doorway. "I think Spike's trying to teach him how to make triple-decker nut-crazy vanilla cream cookies."

"I sure don't mind that," I chuckled. Spike's triple-decker nut-crazy vanilla cream cookies were the best in all of Ponyville. He was also the one I knew to make that flavor.

"Well, don't be expecting Spike's. I think they were trying to put a 'unique twist' on them."

"Oh yeah? How'd that turn out?"

"Actually, really delicious," Twilight licked her lips. I laughed.

"Well, let's put that to the test, shall we?" I nudged the door open to find the two young dragons baking at the stove. They were currently waiting for the next batch to come out, so they leaned against the table and casually chatted. As usual, Spike did most of the talking. Blaze was much more at ease around him than anypony else, but had always been quiet. The squeaking of the door's hinges attracted their attention. Spike was the first to speak up.

"Oh, hey Acrylic!"

"Hey, boys." I pushed the door the rest of the way open and strode inside. A heavenly scent reached my nose. "What have you been up to?"

"We're making triple-decker nut-crazy vanilla cream cookies," Spike answered. "Your favorite."

"With a touch of lemon and powdered sugar," Blaze proudly added. My mouth watered.

"You two are evil, you know that? You're just teasing Twilight with that smell!"

"We gave her a few," Blaze justified with a giggle, realizing he wasn't in any actual trouble.

"Well, I guess that's alright, then," I teased.

"You want one?" The tray Spike offered was too enticing to say no. Not that I'd have said 'no' anyway.

"Don't mind if I do," I grinned, plucking one of the bulkier desserts off the top of the platter. Blaze's face lit up in anticipation as I sank my teeth into the doughey sweet.

"Well?"

"This is _fantastic!_ You boys made this?"

"Yep! It was Blaze's idea to put the lemon in," Spike proudly beamed.

"I knew you liked it," he blushed. Then his brow furrowed. "Does Torchwood like lemon?"

"Even more than me."

"Good." Blaze seemed to huff a sigh of relief.

"Are you going to stay for lunch?" Spike asked.

"No, actually. Torchwood wants to treat us out to the Hayburger."

"The Hayburger?" Blaze's eyes lit up. We'd only been here a week, so he was dying to try out the different restaurants around town.

"Oh, you'll like the Hayburger," Spike voiced. "Drink an extra chocolate milkshake for me while you're there, okay?"

"Okay!" Blaze didn't need convincing.

"Come on," I giggled. "Torchwood's probably back by now. He'll be waiting for us."

"See you tomorrow," Spike waved as I started back out, Blaze on my back. "Oh, hey Acrylic? Can we start practicing in your shop tomorrow instead of the library?"

"Sure thing," I promised. "That good with you, Twilight?"

"Of course! Just make sure that you're back for lunch, Spike. We're having Fluttershy over, remember? I'll need a little help setting up."

"I'll be there," he declared.

"See you then!" Blaze waved and shut the door behind us as I led the way out. The cobblestone roads made the trip a little extra bumpy for Blaze, but he didn't mind. There were a few other ponies out, and the clopping of hoofsteps rang through the square. It was still too quiet for me, so I struck up a conversation.

"Did you have a good time?"

"Oh, yeah! Spike is teaching me all kinds of stuff about how to be a good assistant," he giddily chimed. "It's just... until now, I haven't learned how to be _your_ assistant. That's why I'm so excited for tomorrow! I like helping Twilight and all, but I'm supposed to be your number one assistant, not Twilight's number two."

"Oh, Blaze, you don't have to prove yourself to me. You're already my number one."

"But I haven't done anything yet," he pouted. I gave him a sad smile. Spike had gotten it in his head that he had to be my assistant. But in all honesty, I didn't see Blaze as assistant material. We had formed more of a mother-son relationship over the many months I'd cared for him and his brother Garble. It was great that he wanted to help, and I wouldn't object, but I could never really think of him as any old assistant.

"You've already done more than you can imagine," I told him. He looked puzzled, and sat quietly astride my back as he thought over my words. I chuckled quietly to myself, and turned my attention back to the road. The Hayburger was just up the way. I steered us for the restaurant, bringing Blaze out of the recesses of his mind.

"That's it, right? Spike showed me when he took us on that tour of Ponyville, but we didn't actually get to go inside."

"Yep, that's the Hayburger. And there's Torchwood!" I eyed his dark coat from the window, already in line. I somehow managed to attract his attention, and he waved. Blaze hopped off, and I waved back. Torchwood stepped out of line long enough to greet us. I painfully noticed that even Blaze was a little shy around him, though he allowed himself to be pulled into a loose embrace.

"Hey, kiddo. Have a good day?"

"Yeah," was all he got out of Blaze. Torchwood cast me a glance to ask, 'What now?' I could only helplessly shrug back.

"Well... what do you feel like? I'll get your order in if you go find us a seat. This place is filling up fast."

"Okay. Can I get a hayburger with extra crispy hayfries?"

"And the chocolate milkshake," I winked.

"As you wish, my liege," Torchwood jokingly bowed; that was quite a feat, considering his incredible height. Blaze didn't really find it funny and just walked off to find a seat. I scooted into line beside my fiancé, who sighed. "Am I doing something wrong?"

"He just needs to warm up to you," I assured. "I had months- over a year, actually. You've had a week. Just give it time."

"We both know it's more than that," he quietly said. I was silent as we shuffled forward in line. Admittedly, I did know that it ran deeper. Granted, Blaze's first impression of Torchwood had been a hero who rescued his mother from being mobbed by a group of angry dragons. However, his second, more recent experience had involved watching him fire a nearly fatal shot at Twilight. It hit me instead. Even I still shuddered at the experience. I knew it wasn't his fault, and didn't blame him for it. It had been the darkness in his thestral side coming out. It had since been vanquished. There was nothing more to blame, but Blaze couldn't quite comprehend this just yet.

"You know it wasn't your fault."

"Wasn't it? That was _my_ shot. I almost _killed_ you because I wasn't strong enough to fight it."

"You promised me you'd let it go," I reminded. He looked away. "Look, there were times that I couldn't fight it either. It kept bubbling up and trying to take over. It wasn't. Your. Fault."

"Can I get your order?" A rather tired and frazzled looking clerk interrupted us from the counter. The pony ahead of us had just moved off. We stepped up to fill the space.

"Yes. I'd like two hayburgers and one order of extra crispy hayfries."

"Would you like a drink with that?"

"One bottle of spring water and a small chocolate milkshake," he put in.

"Make that three. A hayburger sounds good to me too," I decided. "And a lemonade to drink." The cashier looked over at me for my order, but gave me a queer look when her eyes settled on my face.

"Hey, you're that thestral couple that's getting married, aren't you?"

"How'd you know?" Torchwood suspiciously pried.

"Everypony's talking about it!" she ecstatically exclaimed.

"They are?"

"Of course! This is the first thestral wedding in centuries! It's a huge event!"

"Well it's certainly a special day for us, but I wouldn't call it a _huge_ event..."

"Is it true that Princess Celestia invited you to host the ceremony at the palace?"

"What? No!"

"What about the dragons? Are you really inviting them to the wedding?"

"The only dragons that are going to be there are Blaze and Spike, but they're local," I stated, brow furrowed in confusion. Why was Equestria making such a big deal out of this? Did they expect it to be different just because it was two thestrals getting married?

"Garble isn't coming?" Torchwood almost looked surprised.

"He's welcome to come, but he'll never stand for that 'mushy stuff,'" I answered. Getting off track, I turned back to the clerk. "Look, can we just get our order in?"

"Oh! Of course. Congratulations, by the way."

"How much do I owe you?" Torchwood asked.

"Sixteen bits," she answered.

"Just sixteen? That can't be right," he muttered, running the numbers in his head.

"Oh, I gave you a slight discount. Just between us, hmm? Consider it a wedding present from the Hayburger to you," she giggled in such a sugary voice I was almost sick.

"I'll go get the napkins," I hastily excused myself. Torchwood almost glared at me for abandoning him to the waitress. I cast a somewhat apologetic glance back. I gathered the napkins, ketchup, silverware and whatnot before finding Blaze at a booth. He was doodling on one of the paper placemats.

"How's it look?" he asked, holding it up. Though the drawing was crude, it had seriously improved since the first drawing he'd shown me. (With nothing better to do during our exile in the Frozen North, I sometimes taught my companions what I knew.) I could even identify it as his brother.

"Much better," I complimented. "You've improved a _lot_."

"It doesn't look much better to me," he pouted. "Nothing like what you do."

"I've had years," I explained. "Experience comes over time. You have to practice before you can get good at something, right?"

"Yeah..." He didn't look convinced.

"Do you want me to start teaching you again?"

"Would you?"

"Sure! This won't be just in my spare time, either. I'll give you a real, proper class to practice."

"That would be awesome! Do you think it'll impress Garble?" I knew better than to say yes. He was 'too cool' for that kind of thing, now that he was back with his clique. When it was just us three, Garble had let his sensitive side show through. But now that he was back with his crew, he had to toughen up. He didn't want any of them to think he'd gone soft. I'd noticed an instantaneous change the first time we went to visit them.

"We'll see," I said instead. Blaze wasn't deterred.

"This'll be great!" Encouraged by our new appointment, he continued doodling. I shuffled my hooves, a little embarrassed about the question I was about to ask, but curious nevertheless.

"Hey, Blaze?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you been hearing... rumors about our wedding?"

"Rumors? Well, Pinkie keeps insisting that it's going to be the best wedding ever."

"No, that's not what I meant."

"Well, what kind of rumors?"

"I don't know. It just seems like everypony expects our wedding to be something special, just because we're thestrals. I don't want to have to live up to expectations on our special day. That kind of defeats the purpose."

"That's stupid," Blaze wrinkled his nose. "I haven't heard anything like that."

"Well, maybe I'll ask Rarity. She's always up on the latest gossip. It'd also explain why she's been so stressed about getting my wedding dress absolutely perfect..."

"Hey, Miss Acrylic!" I recognized the cheery young voice.

"Hi, Apple Bloom, girls. I haven't seen you guys in ages. How've you been?"

"Okay, I guess. But we still don't have our cutie marks."

"Give it time," I smiled. "They'll come eventually."

"About that..." Sweetie Belle shuffled her hooves before mumbling something to Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom whispered back, then jabbed a hoof at Scootaloo. They seemed to be arguing amongst themselves.

"Yes?" I prompted.

"Well," Scootaloo finally spoke up. "We were wondering if you could help us find our special talents."

"Me?"

"Yeah! I mean, you're such a good artist and all, we wondered if you'd teach us."

"It would be so cool to have a painter's cutie mark!"

"We asked Rarity, but she said she was too busy," Sweetie Belle huffed.

"She said not to ask you yet, since you had so much on your mind with the wedding and all..."

"Congratulations on that, by the way!"

"Yeah, congrats. So we'd understand if you were too busy, too." I wasn't sure what to say. I was flattered that they thought me experienced enough to pass on my knowledge, but was I really capable of doing so? Ever since the attempted thestral uprising, I hadn't been so sure of my own capabilities.

When Princess Celestia and Princess Luna took away my wings, it also removed my cutie mark. I'd gotten it back in the end, though slightly altered. I'd been puzzled by why it disappeared in the first place. Through all my friends' crazy mishaps and adventures, never once had they lost their cutie marks. So why had mine vanished altogether? When they transformed me into an earth pony, had they taken away something that would prevent me from finding my calling in life? A part of my thestral side that was critical to fulfilling my destiny? In pondering such questions, I was left with an even bigger one: 'who am I?' Everypony kept trying to dismiss the incident as a side effect of the spell or a simple fluke, but I couldn't help but believe that my cutie mark held deeper meaning than I previously thought.

I doubted myself, but here these three young fillies had enough confidence in me to ask if I would be their teacher! I couldn't help but smile. Perhaps through teaching, I too would learn.

I looked down at Blaze- I'd already promised him personal time. But he nodded vigorously, glad for the company.

"I'd love to," I smiled.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I've already promised to teach Blaze. You three are welcome to join us."

"You're the new dragon, right?" Scootaloo peered up at the orange hatchling beside me.

"That's me," he proudly boasted.

"We haven't actually met. I'm Scootaloo."

"I'm Apple Bloom. And this here's Sweetie Belle."

"Hi!" the white unicorn filly piped up.

"Oh, I already know you," he casually waved. "Acrylic painted all your portraits while we were living up in the Frozen North." I elbowed him. "What?" he hissed.

"You did?" Apple Bloom beamed.

"Wait, you went to the Frozen North?"

"Yeah! We lived up there for almost a year."

"Was it cool?"

"It was a lot colder than that," he corrected. "More like icy, sub-zero, winter weather all the time." Giggles erupted out of the girls.

"You've got to tell us all about it, sometime!" Scootaloo begged.

"Really? You want to know about the Frozen North?"

"More like dragons in general. They're so cool! I mean, we've talked to Spike and all, but he was raised around ponies. I want to know what real wild dragons are like!"

"Well, okay. We'll do that."

"Why don't you sit with us?"

"Yeah! You can tell us everything over lunch!" Blaze looked to me.

"Can I?"

"Go have fun." I nudged him out of the booth with a wink.

"O-okay!" He wasn't used to the special attention, and wasn't quite sure how to react at first. But once he settled in, he regained his confidence. Torchwood didn't take much longer to appear with the tray.

"He left us?" he observed, noting Blaze over with the fillies.

"The girls didn't really leave him with much of a choice," I replied, moving Blaze's food onto a separate tray to bring to him. Torchwood grinned at the comment. Blaze was already engrossed in his storytelling, and barely looked up when the tray was set down. The girls were fixated on his claw gestures that depicted the tale. Smiling to myself, I slid into the booth with Torchwood, somewhat relieved to finally have him to myself. It was getting harder and harder to find time alone with just the two of us.

"They asked me to give them art lessons," I went on.

"Did they, now? What did you tell them?"

"I'm going to do it."

"That's a big leap from studio artist," he noted.

"I know. I wasn't so sure about it myself, but maybe it'll help me."

"To find out what your cutie mark really means?" Though I had purposefully chosen to leave that off the end of my sentence, he read my mind. I looked away and bashfully nodded.

"I know everypony says that it was just a fluke, but I think it was something more than that. I can feel it! Maybe through teaching, I'll learn something myself."

"The teacher often learns more than the student," he nodded. "I suppose at some point or another you were bound to pick up an apprentice. I just didn't think you'd wind up with three of them."

"I've got four, counting Blaze," I corrected. He nodded, letting his gaze drift away. "I'm sure you'll get one of your own, too." I knew how badly he wanted an apprentice. In the sectors we used to live in, school wasn't an option, so it was everypony's dream to become skilled enough in their field to take on and train an apprentice of their own. Fire dancers had become so rare, it was difficult for Torch to find one. And now that we had rejoined Equestria, the mentor-apprentice relationship had all but died out. Regardless, Torch's desire to pass on his knowledge had never died out.

"Perhaps," he disbelievingly agreed.

"Deliveries go smoothly?" I asked, changing the subject. I slid his water across the table.

"More or less," he replied, turning over my burger. "Pish Posh has another new order, and Pristine Gallery wanted to make sure you were thanked for getting her last minute placement in so quickly."

"She's so sweet," I smiled. The poor mare often found it hard to say no to her clients, and sometimes got in over her head with work. She'd recently started turning to me to help her satisfy customers.

"I also got Graphite's package to him..."

"And?"

"And I also asked him about being my best colt."

"And?! What did he say?" I almost jumped out of my seat in suspense.

"Well, at first he wouldn't take me seriously, and accused me of pulling some kind of cruel prank," he admitted with a dry chuckle. "But in the end, I convinced him. He's in."

"That's fantastic!"

"It was quite a relief," he sighed. "For a while, I wasn't sure if he'd say yes. He got mad at me for 'getting him back like that.'" I laughed.

"Poor Graphite. He feels so bad about before that he can't comprehend that we've actually put it behind us."

"I hoped this would help him understand, but it almost pushed him farther away," Torchwood agreed. "Your friends, on the other hoof, can't seem to get involved enough!"

"They're pretty excited, for sure. We added blue to the color scheme, by the way. It was the only way I could finally convince Rarity to settle on a wedding dress. Now she's calling in the rest of the girls to design the bridesmaid gowns."

"I feel bad for them," he joked. "I'd hate to have to act as a living mannequin."

"Just you wait. Rarity hasn't gotten to your suit yet," I reminded with a mischievous grin. He realized the torture to come, and pouted. I playfully poked him. "Oh, it's not that bad. She'll take a few measurements, ask for input, and send you on your way."

"Promise?" He jutted out his lower lip to add a pitiful effect.

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye," I vowed with a smile.

"So, has anypony replied to the invitations?"

"The Cakes promised they'd be able to stay for the reception. Applejack is obviously coming, but she said that she had a few 'friends' she wanted to bring along. If I know her, half the Apple family will probably turn up."

"What about Discord? Is he coming?" I rolled my eyes.

"It's Discord! He'll show up if he feels like it." Torchwood chuckled agreement.

"Who else?"

"Well, Twilight and Rarity want to bring their folks. Then there's the mayor, Tanzanite Miner, Earthen Flame, the Solo twins, Colgate, Bon Bon, Lyra Heartstrings, Ditzy Doo, Time Turner, Rose, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, Carrot Top, Cloud Kicker, Berry Punch, Sea Swirl, Filthy Rich and his family..."

"So in other words, everypony said yes?"

"Minus three," I confirmed with a nod. The sad look in my eye instantly identified the trio of ponies still unaccounted for.

"Still haven't gotten ahold of your family?" he asked.

"I've asked around, and nopony's seen them. I've checked the Ponyville campsite, and they're not there. I don't want to spend the biggest day of my life without them!"

"We'll get ahold of them," he assured.

"They don't even know about you," I sighed. "How are they going to react? I should have visited them before now. It was just too painful..." I bit my lip.

"Not all the thestrals were there at the Tree of Harmony, you know. Some of them are still spread throughout the Everfree. The news may not have reached them."

"You think they're still out in the forest?"

"It's a possibility. Should we ask Twilight to send a few scouts out?"

"Actually, I think this is something I should do myself."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"Would you?"

"Of course."

"It might be a good idea to get the official documents from Twilight, though. They might not take the news seriously from the two thestrals who left in the first place."

"Good idea. Do you think we should have somepony else tag along to prove the point? Somepony who isn't a thestral?"

"Who did you have in mind?"

"Oh, I don't know. Do you think you could talk Rainbow Dash into going back? She's been warming up to thestrals pretty quickly."

"I'm sure I can convince her," I winked.

"You know, Twilight might like to come along herself. After all, who better to welcome the rest of them back than the Princess herself?"

"I suppose it couldn't hurt to ask..." I mumbled. I wasn't sure how they'd react to an alicorn after all this time. A pegasus didn't look so threatening, at least. Torchwood didn't notice the hint of worry in my voice.

"Good. Are you going to be busy after lunch? We can take off as soon as we're finished."

"I'm sure I can take a break," I confirmed. He gave a definite nod, satisfied with our new plans. I took a small, thoughtful bite of the hayburger. Was my family really still out there?


	3. Chapter 3: Messengers

**Chapter 3**

**Messengers**

**A/N: Sorry for the late update guys. Just got back from vacation. I'll try to get back to Friday updates from now on.**

"Hey, Rainbow Dash!" I heard the snores turn to snorts as she started to rouse.

"W-what?" she yawned, rubbing her eyes. I glided down to land gently on the cloud she'd been napping on. Seeing it was just me, she flopped back down. "Five more minutes."

"Have a good rest?" I chided.

"What do you want?" she groggily groaned, rolling over.

"Come on, sleepyhead. Wake up!"

"Can't it wait?" she groaned.

"You don't even know what I'm here for!"

"Doesn't matter. Come back later."

"You sure you don't want to know why I'm here before you chase me away?" Realizing I wasn't going to leave her alone, she jerked back up in annoyance.

"Oh, for Celestia's sake! What is it?"

"Oh, nothing. Just wondered if you were interested in meeting my parents..."

"Come again?" The way I talked about my father, Wind Storm, almost made him seem like an idol in Rainbow's eyes. He was, in fact, the fastest thestral I'd ever known. He was much faster than me, and I could already keep up with Rainbow- most of the time. She'd been incredibly eager to meet him.

"Well, I've been having trouble finding them all to invite them to the wedding, so Torchwood suggested that maybe they never got the memo. We're going to the Everfree for a quick fly over to round up any stragglers. You in?"

"Well, since you've already got me up..." She tried to disguise her excitement under a calm and casual mask. It wasn't working.

"Sorry 'bout that," I apologetically smiled. "Come on. Torchwood's trying to recruit Twilight to join us."

"Yeah? How'd that work out?"

"Well, let's go see."

* * *

"There you are! You ready to go?" To my surprise, it was Twilight who greeted us. She was wearing her saddlebags, which had been packed with several official looking documents.

"Uh, yeah... So you're coming after all?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world! Princess Celestia left me in charge of integrating the thestrals back into society, and if some have been left behind, it's my duty to make sure they're recovered," she declared, stuffing another scroll into the already packed saddlebags.

"Have a good trip!" Spike waved from inside. He'd been reunited with Blaze, and the two both waved from inside. While Blaze did have wings, he hadn't learned to fly just yet. They hadn't filled out enough to lift him off the ground. Even if he was able to fly, I doubted he could keep up for the duration of our trip. It was best that they both stay behind.

"Alright, then." I backed out of the library, surprised at how quickly we'd gotten organized.

"Now, before we leave, I thought that it might be a good idea to divide into groups," Twilight stated. "That way we can cover more ground. Acrylic, could you go with Rainbow Dash? I don't mean to split you up from your fiancé, Torchwood, but I think it would be best if there's a thestral in each group."

"Good thinking," he agreed.

"And Acrylic's the only pony who can actually keep up with Rainbow. That leaves the two of us."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Rainbow exclaimed, jumping into the air. Twilight made no move to call her back, so I started after her.

"Acrylic, here!" A few of her scrolls were levitated up to me. "Just in case you find anypony, you've got proof," she explained.

"Thanks," I called back down. Rainbow was waiting for me, so I zoomed up after her.

"Any ideas on where we should start looking?" she called over the wind.

"Our best bet will probably be my old sector," I answered. "Blade Wing Four. It's this way." I knew she wouldn't tolerate a casual flight, and picked up the pace.

"Whatever you say, boss," she saluted, slicing through the air after me. I looked back to find Torchwood and Twilight taking a much slower gait. Knowing her, she was probably taking the opportunity to learn all she could about fire dancing from an expert. At that pace, they'd get some ground covered, but it would be mostly up to Rainbow and I. Better get busy, in that case. I flapped even harder, pushing me into the lead. Rainbow took that to mean I wanted to race, and streaked off in a rainbow colored blur. I didn't have much of a choice but to keep up. She had the advantage, though; I had to make sure the documents weren't lost. I was beginning to wish I'd brought my own saddlebags. The wind was doing its best to steal them from me.

I soon forgot about the scrolls, and lost myself to the contest. I wasn't one to back down from a challenge. The air whistling by my ears almost seemed to be singing to me. I shut my eyes, furled my wings, and simply dropped. Rainbow got worried at first, but then remembering how much I loved to free fall, she flipped onto her back and dropped with me. What had started out as a relaxing free fall quickly escalated into a stunt competition. First, Rainbow tried impressing me with a series of barrel rolls. I countered that with a last minute free fall recovery, pulling up inches from the ground. She corralled five particularly puffy clouds and sculpted them into a shape resembling her cutie mark in ten seconds flat. Meanwhile, I was folding into another headlong dive for the trees, using the fold of skin inside my wing elbow (or wing membrane, as it was called) to swing me back up into the air and perform crazy spins and weaves. By the time I recovered from my dizziness, Rainbow was a speck in the sky. I perched on a cloud to catch my breath and regain my balance. What was she doing? By the time I realized, it was too late. Rainbow was going in for a sonic rainboom.

She was just a few hundred feet above me when she reached the required speed. At that rate, it would only take seconds to bring her to my level. I was trying to wave for her to stop, but she didn't see me. A sonic rainboom would wake up the entire Everfree! While it did seem like the quickest way to attract thestrals, I didn't feel like dealing with ursa majors or cragadiles today. Given our current location, though, we'd more likely have to face off with timberwolves or manticores. There would be no escape, then; the latter had wings.

My wings snapped open to bring me in her direction. I wasn't sure what I hoped to do. Collide? At least it would slow her down and stop the shockwave from shaking the forest. She saw me coming, but she was going too fast. She swerved to avoid the collision, but only sped up. Before I could dive after her, a deafening *******BOOM*** struck me senseless. White noise rang in my ears, and I dropped about a hundred feet before finally regaining enough sense to recover. I hovered midair, shaking my head in an attempt to return to reality. Rainbow wasn't too happy with me, either.

"What was that for? Afraid to get shown up?"

"Do you have any idea what you've just done?" I shouted back. She remained silent, willing to hear me out. I was more interested in hearing something suspicious come from the forest. I listened for any unusual rustlings. I was too high up to hear anything if I'd wanted to. "A blast that loud would wake up the whole forest," I explained in the sternest voice I could manage.

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"Not when we're right above manticore territory," I hissed.

"Oh." Realization hit her like a brick wall. Something moving in the corner of my eye attracted my attention. My jaw dropped.

"THE SCROLLS!" The abandoned parchments were fluttering to the ground. I must have dropped them when the blast of the rainboom hit me. Rainbow and I both dove to retrieve them. She was faster, and caught two in one swoop. I retrieved one, and eyed a second settled atop the tree canopy.

"Did you get them all?" Rainbow panted, cradling the two in the crook of her elbows.

"There's one missing," I gasped. "Twilight gave us five. We only have four!"

"So that means..."

"It's down there," I finished. We both peered through a gap in the branches, down at manticore territory.

* * *

"Find it yet?" Rainbow hissed. I peered under another bush.

"No. Be quiet!" She'd snapped another twig. Manticores had exceptional hearing. She gingerly stepped over a rock and explored a fox burrow. "Ugh. Where could it have gone?"

"Twilight's going to kill us!" I whimpered, circling another tree trunk.

"Check the branches," Rainbow ordered. "Maybe it got caught coming down."

"It might be a better job for you. You don't have such a large wingspan. You'll fit between the branches better than me."

"Alright. You take that grove, then."

"Right." I jumped over a couple of ferns to the area she indicated. The grove was shrouded by a ring of densely packed trees and shrubs. I poked around under the greenery for a while, but found nothing. I wasn't sure how to get through the trees without attracting attention, but finally managed an angle where I could poke my head through. My breath caught in my throat. No wonder the trees were so densely packed. I should've known better than to go poking around in it. This was a manticore den! I jerked away, but then remembered that I was supposed to be quiet, and tiptoed the rest of the way. When I thought I was out of immediate danger, I scrambled back to where I'd left Rainbow. We had to get out of here, scroll or no scroll.

"Rainbow?" I whispered. I wasn't sure what I was hoping to achieve with that. I'd have to raise my voice and risk attracting the manticores if I wanted her to hear me. I cleared my throat.  
"Rainbow Dash!" I winced. The entire Everfree must have heard that. There was a rustling in the trees nearby. Already on edge, it didn't take much to put me into full defense mode. A couple of leaves fluttering to the ground told me it wasn't a manticore. They never attacked from the trees. And instead of snarling, all I could hear was faded grunting. I climbed onto one of the sturdier bows to investigate. The sight that met me made me want to face-hoof.

"A little help?" Rainbow grunted, tugging at her entrapped wing. The pegasus had somehow managed to work her way into a particularly dense cluster of branches. The problem was, she couldn't get out.

"When I said you could fit through smaller spaces, I didn't mean _that _small!"

"Thanks for that," she grumbled.

"We've got to get out of here," I said, awkwardly hovering beside her. My wings weren't made for such tight quarters.

"First, _I_ have to get out of _here_," she irritably reminded, taking my hoof and pulling. I pulled back, hoping to break her out of the tangled brambles. "Ow! Careful!"

"Shh! You don't understand!"

"Quit pulling so hard!" All of Equestria must have heard that one.

"Be quiet!" We both froze, ears swiveled forward as a growl echoed through the already dark and eerie forest.

"What was that?" Rainbow shuddered.

"I was trying to tell you," I groaned. The mother manticore came smashing through the brush. We couldn't yet see her, but she was coming up fast. "We're about a hundred yards from a manticore den."

"WHAT?!" She was practically screaming, not helping our case. The crashes came faster, closer. I pulled harder, despite Rainbow's protests. A loud **crack** sounded her freedom. The branches snapped, sending us both tumbling to the ground. We were each tangled in each other's wings. Well, mostly mine, given that they were long enough to envelope the both of us. By the time we were both back on our hooves, hot breath trickled down our backs. A very angry manticore proved to be the source.

"RUN!" Too late. Rainbow was already trying to fight it. Would she ever listen to me? I couldn't let her face down the beast alone. What else could I do but join in? I reared, and brought my hooves down hard, not only causing an earth-shattering quake to rock the ground but also blasting white flames into existence. I recalled the little training Torchwood provided me in the art of fire dancing, and directed the fire with my mind to envelope the manticore. I didn't want to burn her; she was only defending her cubs. So I kept the fire cool, but briefly let small patches grow very hot to chase her off. She howled at the pinching sensation I created, only making her angrier. I didn't understand. This technique always worked to chase off Everfree creatures. We used it all the time back when I still lived out here. What was I doing wrong?

"YAAH!" Rainbow reeled back to avoid being hit with the creature's scorpion tail.

"Get back!" I screamed. "Run! Just run!"

"What about the scroll?"

"Forget the scroll!" Finally, Rainbow listened to me. She darted off into the open sky. I was inches from freedom myself, when I felt claws digging into my ankle and dragging me back down. A startled whinny was all I could manage. I wasn't sure if Rainbow heard me; a veil of leaves soon blocked my view. I lashed out, kicked, writhed, and did everything in my power to get out of the manticore's claws. The vague stinging around my hoof told me that she'd broken skin. I'd suffer worse damage than a mere scratch if I didn't get away soon.

I was flung to the ground, hitting hard against the base of a tree. The breath was knocked out of me by a tremendous force; I looked up to find a giant paw was planted squarely on my chest. The other paw was raised to plant the death blow. I flinched, closing my eyes in preparation for impact. The familiar whistling told me that help was on the way. A delay of the crushing hit caused me to peek an eye open: Rainbow was folded into a steep dive right for us. She'd attracted the manticore's attention, too. She swooped down, barely knocking into the creature. It was still enough to make the manticore falter. So long as she was sparring with Rainbow, she was too busy to remember little old me. I shoved with all my might, pushing her off of me completely and fighting fire with fire, literally. This time, I let the flames blaze. She howled, finally backing off.

I couldn't keep up the intense temperature much longer. But I couldn't escape, either. My wing had been damaged somewhere in the skirmish. The pain was too much. I knew I'd never be able to take off like this. Even if Rainbow had realized my predicament, I doubted she'd be able to carry me very far. So I was stuck between a rock and a hard place, or more appropriately, between the ground and an angry manticore. My energy was wearing out. Even Rainbow had her limits. She was wearing thin as well. I couldn't maintain the fire wall. It sputtered out. The manticore glared down at me, hatred in her eyes. Rainbow had vanished.


	4. Chapter 4: Acrylic's Parents

**Chapter 4**

**Acrylic's Parents**

I shrunk back, pressed against what might have been the same tree trunk as before. She was coming for me, and this time, there was no escape. Her breath was hot, and stung my coat like venom. I lashed at her nose with my hooves, but there was no fight left in me. They pinged off like nothing. If anything, she almost seemed amused at my attempt at this point. Looking past her, I noted Rainbow's crumpled form discarded into the shrubs. She wasn't moving. So she wasn't coming to my rescue, and I certainly wasn't coming to hers. This was it. I shut my eyes again. I didn't want to watch this.

I didn't have to. Something hard and hot blasted into the manticore's side. It was too stunned to make a sound as the force caused it to tumble. Then a pale blur shot out of the shadows, picking up the fight where we left off. I couldn't recognize our mysterious hero; he moved too fast. But it was obvious he was a thestral by the pale yellow flames he emitted. I didn't have time to ponder his identity.

While the manticore was distracted, I limped over to Rainbow, and tried shaking her back to consciousness. "Rainbow? Rainbow, get up!" A loud groan told me she was okay. "Dashie, we've got to get out of here!"

"Five more minutes," she moaned.

"You can have all the time you want once we're back in Ponyville. Get up!" I could only drag her further from the clearing to keep us from getting trampled. Whoever had come to our rescue was making short work of the manticore. Rainbow was finally fully awake, and hunkered down with me to watch. A couple of hedges provided enough cover. I soon realized why my attacks hadn't had the desired effect: I was untrained. A real thestral guard was prepared and exact, always ready to take on whatever danger they were faced with. I hadn't lived in the Everfree for years, and let my guard down. My attack was unstrategic and sloppy. This thestral acted with extreme speed and precision.

The pale form attacked in a recurring pattern: kick, spin, fly, repeat. Kick, spin, fly, repeat. This allowed him to elude the manticore with extreme cunning while still planting a few blows here and there. After what seemed like an eternity, the manticore had enough. She bellowed defiance before tramping back into the underbrush. Rainbow and I stepped out from hiding to give our thanks, but the figure still hadn't turned around. He was pale blue with a short, windblown mane and tail. The outer edges were tinged with white, but the inner hairs were a light blue just slightly more saturated than Rainbow's coat. I couldn't tell much else about him with his back to us. He was breathing heavily from the exertion of the fight, looking after the manticore as if he couldn't believe he'd won.

"Uh... sir?" I called, hoping to attract his attention. He perked up, remembering the foolish fillies he'd just saved. He straightened from his crouched position, revealing his deceptively towering height. He would probably be eye level with Torchwood, but he was much more buff than my fiancé. Strength rippled in his large frame, that much was evident. When he turned, I was faced with kind and familiar blue eyes. I almost choked.

"DAD!"

"Acry-?" He was cut off when I tackled him into a bear hug, teary eyed. He squeezed me right back, wings folded around me in protective embrace. "Don't you know better than to mess with a fully grown manticore?" he playfully chided.

"I do now," I answered, burying myself deeper into his arms.

"Where've you been all this time?" he pried me away so he could get a good look at my face. "Look at you! You're all grown up."

"I was grown up when I left, Dad," I insisted.

"Of course you were. But you're different. You look... older."

"Gee, thanks," I laughed.

"What's this?" Something shiny caught his eye, and he fished my engagement ring out of my mane. I thanked Celestia the chain hadn't broken or come loose in the mayhem. His eyes grew wide with realization. "You're..."

"I've been trying to get ahold of you and Mom," I said with a nod. "We couldn't find you anywhere."

"Honey, we haven't moved an inch! Where've you been looking?"

"So you haven't heard, then?"

"Heard what?"

"That thestrals are moving back into Equestria. All of them, not just in small groups like I did. The Princesses made it official and everything. There's been a scramble to get thestrals placed in homes and stuff... I assumed you'd already been relocated."

"Thestrals are_ back_?"

"For good, this time."

"That's..." I wasn't sure how he was taking the news.

"Dad?"

"That's wonderful! I didn't dare believe it when I saw the declaration. I assumed it was some colt's idea of a prank. But I suppose this is yours, then?" I looked at the parchment he offered, recognizing it instantly as the lost document we'd come to retrieve.

"Uh, yeah," I admitted, taking the troublesome scroll.

"You did it, then? You brought us back to the light, just like you said you would all those years ago?"

"With some help." I remembered that Rainbow was probably awkwardly standing in the background, watching our reunion. I looked back to where she was standing, making her presence known and also accrediting her to assisting in our return.

"Hello, there," Dad said, standing up. I moved out from underneath him to give him room, but still tucked myself under his wing.

"Dad, I'd like you to meet Rainbow Dash. Rainbow, meet my dad."

"Mr. Wind Storm, it's so good to finally meet you! Acrylic's told me so much!" She eagerly shook his hoof when it was extended.

"All good things, I hope?"

"Very,_ very_ good things!" she assured. "You're a really good flyer, right?"

"I like to think so," he proudly confessed.

"I'd love to put that to the test sometime. If you don't mind, that is," she hurriedly added.

"Well, I don't like to disappoint, but I'm afraid age is getting the best of me."

"That's for sure. I barely recognized you!" I playfully batted at a loose strand of white hair. The outer rim of his mane was once a glorious dark blue to match his eyes. Now, it had faded to its current cloudy color. He narrowed his eyes at the remark, taking it all in good humor.

"Well, old age or not, I have a reputation to uphold. It's a date."

"YES!"

"Where's Mom? Back at the camp?"

"Along with a few others. We heard that there was to be a revolution; a thestral uprising, no less! Our numbers are dwindling since the recruitment of soldiers, admittedly, but a few remain."

"I can't wait to see Wild Flower again," I squealed, happily trotting along after him. She was my sister, whom I hadn't seen in years.

"Wild Flower?"

"She is here, isn't she?"

"No. Shortly after you moved to Ponyville, Wild Flower decided to find her own way in Equestria too. I'd have thought she'd meet up with you out there."

"I never saw her in Ponyville," I shook my head. "Ugh! I tried so hard just to track you down. Now I have to go find her, too?"

"Well, she's out there somewhere, I'm sure of it. We'll have her rounded up before your big day. When is it, by the way? Goodness, I don't even know who you're engaged to! Is is somepony I know?"

"No, but he's a thestral, too. His name's Torchwood, from Midnight Armor Sector Two. He's a fire dancer, and a good one at that. You'll just love him!"

"We'll see about that." I didn't like the tone of voice Dad had used.

"Come on, Dad. Just give him a chance."

"It's my job to worry about you. I wish you'd at least have introduced us before you decide to marry him!"

"I told you, I couldn't get ahold of you guys. You never did write, you know."

"Too risky. We couldn't smuggle the letters in and out without raising suspicion. I guess that doesn't matter now, does it?"

"Nope. I've even got a dragon friend, now. You can send your letters directly through him. Torchwood says that thestrals can send letters like they can. I tried to write to him once, but there was a magic barrier inhibiting them from being received."

"A dragon?" Dad seemed surprised. "Where'd you find a dragon in Ponyville?"

"Not in Ponyville. You remember Ignition?"

"Of course I do! How is she?" The color drained from my face, and my expression told him exactly what had become of the dragoness. "Oh. Oh, no. I'm so sorry."

"Me too. Well, Blaze was her youngest son. I promised to look out for him, so now he lives with me."

"Doesn't he have an older brother? Garble, wasn't it? What's become of him?"

"He's 'too cool' for ponies. He moved back to the dragon flock."

"Ah. I see."

"Oh, I've just got so much to tell you and Mom! Hey, are we almost there? I don't remember the trip taking so long."

"You aren't used to coming this way, either. And on hoof, no less. We speed demons used to cross the whole Everfree in five minutes. The trip takes a little longer down on the ground, you know. What do you say to a fly over?"

"I'm in!" Rainbow declared.

"I... can't..." I sighed. Dad squinted, scrutinizing my frame more closely than before. The bloodied ankle and bent wing must have stood out like complimentary colors.

"Oh, what have you done to yourself?" he sighed, sitting me down before I could aggravate the wound any more.

"It was the manticore," I indignantly huffed, wincing as he fooled with the gash.

"Your mother will be able to bandage this better than me," he finally said. "Climb up."

"What, on your back? No, thanks. I think I prefer to wal-" I was cut off when somepony yanked me off the ground and dropped me on Dad's back. Rainbow smirked down from above.

"Hang on," he ordered. I didn't have much of a choice when his powerful wings lifted the both of us up into the air. I wrapped my hooves around his neck, taking care not to inhibit his flying ability. Rainbow was exhausted, but that didn't keep her from chasing after us. She'd left the other scrolls wrapped safely in a cloud, so she made a quick detour to retrieve them. Dad was going fast, but not fast enough for Rainbow to take it as a race. I set my head on his, watching the treetops fly by. He didn't seem to mind.

It wasn't the same as flying myself, but I shut my eyes as the breeze sifted through my mane. It didn't look like I'd be up here again any time soon with my wing busted as it was. Even so, I clung for my life. If he banked too hard one way, I'd be sent tumbling back into the trees. Of course, my flying expert knew this, and barely turned at all. In fact, instead of banking into the clearing as we usually did, he just sort of... dropped down. Hence, this wasn't his most graceful landing. Rainbow came down in the proper manner with one clean swoop. Realizing the unusual circumstances, she made no comment about Dad's clumsy landing. I hopped off without delay, glad to be back on my own four- er, three- hooves.

Dad wasn't kidding. The clearing looked, well, clear. Most of the tents had already been taken down. Only a few sparse structures remained, spread throughout the clearing. The central bonfire still remained, currently ablaze with somepony's deep purple fire. With such an open view, it was easy for me to identify our old tent. Mom's pottery was still littered around the front. As if on cue, the mare shuffled out from behind the canvas structure with another new creation clutched between her jaws. Thestrals were nocturnal, so she must have been up late. This assumption was reinforced by her droopy eyes.

She wasn't as tall as Dad, but still stood an inch above me. Her coat was pale yellow, but a shade brighter and just a touch more green than Fluttershy's. Her mane was kept up in a green and pink swirled beehive with bangs bouncing over her eyes. Her tail was loosely twirled in on itself, but wasn't really styled in any particular manner. She had beautiful emerald eyes, which were sometimes framed by stylish glasses. It was clear who I'd inherited my curled ears from, though her muzzle was small and petite like most mares unlike my pointed one. Her cutie mark depicted a simple red-clay vase.

"MA!" I called, dashing across the clearing on my three good hooves. Her head snapped around at the sound of my voice, and she dropped her latest creation into the grass. (Luckily, it didn't break.)

"Acrylic!" She bolted to meet me halfway. Being so much larger than me as she was, she could have easily bowled me over. But I knew better. She was too gentle for that. She slowed down in plenty of time to scoop me into warm embrace. "I've missed you," she sniffled through happy tears.

"I missed you too," I choked.

"Let me look at you," she smiled, taking a step back and releasing me from her hold.

"We _do_ need you to take a look at her ankle, specifically," Dad said, coming forward to greet his wife. Mom returned his nuzzle, peered down at the cut, and scowled at me.

"What have you gotten yourself into?"

"Oh, nothing big. You know... just a _little_ skirmish with a... a manticore..." My voice got quieter and quieter in an attempt to muffle my answer. But there was no fooling Mother.

"A _MANTICORE_? You faced off with a manticore by yourself? Come, now! Your father drilled more sense into you than that."

"Well, I wasn't alone. Rainbow was with me." I gestured back at my waiting pegasus friend. Luckily, Mom wasn't fazed whatsoever by the fact that she was with me.

"Ah. I see we have company. Well, come in, come in! What kind of hostess would I be if I kept you all waiting out here? Now, we haven't got much, but make yourself at home."

"Thank you, Mrs. Storm, isn't it?"

"It is, but I prefer Vase. Porcelain Vase. 'Porcelain Storm' doesn't roll off the tongue quite so well, does it?"

"Sure thing, Mrs. Vase."

"Rainbow Dash, isn't it?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Well, it's good to make your acquaintance, Miss Dash."

"Aww, you can just call me Rainbow."

"Very well, Miss Rainbow." Dashie giggled at her formality. "As I said, make yourself at home. I'll be back shortly. I need to find some bandages for this one here." Mom gave me a gentle yet reprimanding cuff behind the ear with her wing as she walked by.

"Ow," I quietly groaned, rubbing my head.

"You are lucky it wasn't worse," Dad reminded, setting himself beside me.

"Yeah, I know."

"So, when do I get to meet this Torchwood of yours, hmm?"

"As soon as he finds us. He came along too, but got paired up with Twilight. She wanted a thestral in both groups in case we encountered... trouble."

"Sounds logical," he commented.

"Speaking of which, where are they? I'd have thought that sonic rainboom would have attracted their attention for sure."

"That was loud enough to rock the whole forest! They must've heard it," Rainbow mused.

"You don't think they ran into trouble, do you?"

"I can go see if I can find them," Rainbow offered.

"Perhaps I should go. After all, you raise a good point. If they have encountered some sort of danger, I will know better how to deal with it. And what's more- not all of us who remain in the Everfree are aware of the peace treaty. If your friends have encountered more stragglers, they may become volatile. In self-defense, of course, but dangerous nonetheless. It would be best if another thestral were there to settle things down," Dad pointed out.

"Torchwood's a thestral," I reminded.

"Yes. _Torchwood_." Dad said his name slowly and critically, still wrapping his head around the fact that his little filly was engaged. "Still, better two thestrals than two of the... others." He glanced at Rainbow Dash. I knew my father well enough to know that this was not a prejudice comment, simply implying fact. Rainbow, on the other hoof, didn't know him quite so well.

"I can come along too. If you're as fast as you say you are, we can have the whole forest covered in five minutes flat."

"Can the race not wait?" Dad sighed. Rainbow now ignored him, determined to tag along and prove herself.

"I'll cover the East end if you get the West. If you find anypony, just give a signal. How are you with fire displays?"

"Not the best, but not too bad either, I suppose. And you? Don't tell me you have a flame-thrower on you."

"I can do another sonic rainboom. Duh." She took off to start covering the East side as she'd promised. She was a little weary, so I held Dad back another minute.

"Keep an eye on Rainbow. I don't know if she has another sonic rainboom in her."

"That I will. Don't face off any more manticores while I'm gone, hmm?"

"I'll do my best," I giggled, giving him another farewell nuzzle. With that, his powerful wings carried him up to the Everfree skies.

This left me with nothing more to do than to curl up on the cushions inside the tent and examine Mom's newer creations. I had been gone for so long that there wasn't a single familiar pot in the whole place. That was fine by me. There was a whole new collection to be examined. I got my artistic talent from my mother's side; we'd bred a long line of artists for generations. Even my sister, Wild Flower, was an artist in her own way. She always loved tending to her plants. I helped arrange her bouquets at first, but she'd come to do it herself over time. I cocked my head in thought. Speaking of which, I could think of no better pony to create the wedding's floral arrangements than my dear sibling.


	5. Chapter 5: Father-in-Law

**Chapter 5**

**Father-in-Law**

**A/N: Remember from the first book where underlined scenes mean 3rd person POV? Well, it's carrying over here, so keep this in mind!**

"Married?" Wind Storm muttered to himself for the hundredth time. He quietly chuckled to himself as he glided over the treetops. "She's growing up," he sighed. "But I don't want to let her go."

He was taking the news just as well as could be expected. He'd never heard of this stallion before, much less met him. Wind Storm was willing to give him a chance, considering how much he meant to his daughter. Still, he wasn't giving his little girl up to just any old bloak. He needed to prove himself to Wind Storm, first. And what of Porcelain? He realized with a start that his wife hadn't been informed of the wedding. How would she take the news? Of course, she missed very little. Had she noticed the ring around Acrylic's neck and simply kept quiet? He doubted it. She wouldn't be so keen on giving up their eldest, either. Would she?

Memories of the little filly they raised flashed before Wind Storm's eyes. But that little filly wasn't the same as he remembered. All that she'd been through changed her. She had a certain look of understanding in her eyes that he just couldn't place. A look so familiar, yet he couldn't quite put his hoof on it.

"Where are they?" a distant voice called. The echo rang in Wind Storm's ears, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"The sonic rainboom came from here, I'm sure of it," a masculine voice answered. Wind Storm set his jaw. Could that voice possibly belong to Torchwood?

"Well, they obviously aren't here. Is there any way to track them? Oh, why didn't I think of a way to keep in contact?"

"Maybe Rainbow Dash did. Perhaps she was trying to signal us through the rainboom."

"You don't think they ran into trouble, do you?"

"It's hard to tell. But Acrylic knows this area. It's very close to her home. I'm sure they're both fine. They have to be. Because if anything happened to her..." The voice trailed off. Wind Storm was hovering in the general vicinity of their voices, but still failed to identify faces.

"We'll find them," the second voice consolingly assured.

"Don't you know any tracking spells?"

"You could always ask for directions," Wind Storm pointed out, finally coming down through the tree tops where he thought the voices were coming from. Sure enough, two young ponies about his daughter's age were standing in the Everfree's shade, startled by their visitor. Wind Storm carefully scrutinized the brown-coated stallion who was obviously a thestral. He was accompanied by a purple alicorn, which caused him to raise an eyebrow, but he said nothing.

The stallion was about his height with a dark coat, a black and blond mane, though the tail was kept a little longer than Wind Storm approved of. His eyes were like coals, but had a certain amber glow to them. The cutie mark was what gave him away: it was a torch.

"You're Torchwood?" Wind Storm went on. The stallion narrowed his eyes.

"That's right. And you are?"

"Apparently, your future father-in-law." Both the ponies froze.

"That means you're... Acrylic's father?"

"Wind Storm," he proudly nodded.

"I-It's an honor to meet you, sir," Twilight addressed, caught off guard but making a quick recovery. Torchwood, too, cleared his throat.

"You've spoken to Acrylic, then? Is she safe?"

"She is now, though I initially found her facing off with a manticore."

"A manticore!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Is she alright?" Torchwood hurriedly put in.

"She suffered a few cuts, but she's still in one piece," Wind Storm gruffly answered. "Follow me. I'll take you to her."

"Thank you, sir," Torchwood gratefully sighed, spreading his wings for takeoff. Wind Storm nodded a second time. At least the lad was respectful.

"This way," he grumbled before shooting up into the sky. He had purposefully taken off at full speed, just to see what Torchwood was capable of. He wasn't really worried about how athletic he was as much as what his character was like. Still, he could have some fun with him.

To his surprise, Torchwood moved quickly. He had by no means caught up to him, but the stallion was still pretty quick. Unfortunately, Twilight was not nearly so spry on her newfound wings. She resorted to teleporting between the treetops to keep pace instead.

It wasn't until he was directly over the camp that he remembered that he was supposed to be signaling Rainbow Dash. He wasn't the most skilled at keeping his own flame under control, and definitely didn't want to make a fool of himself trying to wrangle the fire to his bidding in front of his future son-in-law. Hadn't Acrylic said that his talent was fire dancing? His mediochre display could never compare to the a flawless technique refined fire dancers had. Then again, he'd never actually seen Torchwood's displays. That gave him an idea. So long as he was already putting him through a physical, why not test Torchwood's other abilities? The brown stallion swooped over to the hovering father and stopped alongside him, calling loudly over the loud whooshing of wingbeats.

"Something wrong?"

"Your friend Rainbow Dash is still out there looking for you. I'm supposed to send a signal to reign her in. But Acrylic tells me you're quite the fire dancer."

"I earned my special talent in it," Torchwood proudly admitted, nodding back at the mark on his flank. Wind Storm narrowed his eyes at the boast.

"Well then, perhaps you would rather call her back? I haven't had the priviledge of witnessing any of your displays."

"It would be my pleasure," Torchwood nodded. His eyes shone at the opprotunity. He was better than just a good fire dancer; he was the best. Though a good show wouldn't be enough to win over his fiancé's critical father, it could earn him some respect. At once, the fire dancer summoned his flames, causing them to appear out of thin air. Already, Wind Storm was impressed. He was inarguably unskilled in this field, and usually needed a bit of kindling to help his get going. Torchwood went further, growing the suspended blaze until it could have engulfed them both. And that it did, swirling, expanding, spiraling into an orange-and-green vortex. If this didn't catch Rainbow's eye, Wind Storm didn't know what would.

It had indeed attracted attention, and not just from Rainbow. Most of the sparse camp had woken up and gathered just to gaze upon the spectacle. Most had ever seen such a talented fire dancer in their entire lifetime. Twilight didn't even recieve one odd glance from the gathering thestrals when she landed in their midst. They were all too focused on the show for that. The alicorn looked around for Acrylic in the crowd, but didn't recognize their missing companion. She was distracted from the search when a loud ***CRACK*** burst from overhead, a color burst exploding in the sky to announce the grand finale. Torchwood also took it to mean that she got the message, and let the vortex burn itself out. The flames were completely harmless, and he glided right through its bright, flickering wall. Wind Storm followed his lead, and the two thestrals were greeted by the thrilled onlookers. Rainbow Dash made a grand entrance when she slammed to the ground with a colossal thud. She managed to stay on her hooves, but it wasn't one of her more graceful landings. Despite the breed difference, she was instantly swarmed by fans. They all associated her glorious multi-colored mane with the astounding sonic rainboom they'd just witnessed. She coiled back in shock at first, but then her ego took over, and she soaked up all the attention like a sponge.

Torchwood, on the other hoof, didn't waste any time on his new admirers. He hustled through the dense cluster after Wind Storm (the ponies instantly parted for the well-respected thestral). They headed right for the pottery-littered tent. Most of the crowd dispersed when they realized he wouldn't reserve time for them, but a few of the more loyal onlookers trotted after them, curious as to what business he had with the Storm family.

* * *

Mom had come back as promised, a small bag of bandages clenched between her teeth. She was probably only carrying them in such a manner so she didn't contaminate the bandages themselves. While she fashioned a sling for my wing, I explained in more detail what exactly had happened with the manticore. She listened indifferently, focused on her work but nodding every so often to let me know she was still listening. She was a terrific multitasker. She absorbed every word you said, though she looked preoccupied. This came in handy when she was in the middle of a project, especially in her field. Pottery couldn't always afford to go very long without attention.

After my manticore story, she tenderly moved onto my ankle. There wasn't much blood, but what little there was had dried and caked around the gash, making it slightly uncomfortable to move. She dabbed at it with a damp cloth to remove the stiff clot before wrapping it in a fresh bind. It wasn't too tight that it hurt, but kept a good amount of pressure on it.

"So, tell me about Ponyville. Do you like it there?"

"Oh, Mom, I _love_ it there! I've got my own shop, now. And I met the kindest, friendliest ponies you could ever hope for in that town."

"Do you meet _him_ there?"

"Him?"

"The _one,_" she clarified. It was still incredibly vague, but I caught on.

"How'd you know?"

"You know me, Acrylic. I never miss anything." She beamed down at the necklace I wore, ring strung through it. Now, she finally bent in close to examine it closely. "Who is the lucky stallion?" I blushed.

"His name's Torchwood," I confessed.

"Torchwood," she mused, lost deep in thought. "And when do I get to meet the young Torchwood?"

"As soon as Rainbow and Dad get back. They're supposed to be out looking for them."

"Them?"

"Twilight Sparkle, one of my other Ponyville friends, is with him."

"I see. Traveling in pairs, then. That makes sense. One thestral in each group. Quite logical, after recent events."

"It was Twilight's idea," I boasted, puffing out my chest at my friend's grand idea.

"Good for her. Is she a pegasus too, then?"

"Actually, she's an alicorn."

"Really? An alicorn? Royalty in the Everfree?"

"She was recently promoted," I winked. "She's taken on the reintegration of thestrals as her own personal project."

"I see," Mother slowly nodded, absorbing this new information. "I look forward to making her aquaintance."

"You'll love her," I assured.

"Royalty from Ponyville," she thought, still unable to get her head around it. "I suppose it never occurred to me that such important ponies would come from such small towns. Though, I suppose this makes two grand ponies from Ponyville, doesn't it? I should say your dear Torchwood counts, if he makes you that happy." She beamed at me again, proud of her daughter, now all grown up.

"Well, he's not really from Ponyville. He's originally from Midnight Armor Sector Two here in the Everfree, of course, but then he moved to Vanhoover."

"Vanhoover? What's a thestral doing in Vanhoover? Ponyville I can see, with it being so close to home, but you can't get any farther from the Everfree than Vanhoover!"

"Wow, Mom. You're really up on your Equestria geography."

"Well, I have forged a little more interest in the rest of the world since my two girls moved there," she slyly grinned.

"Torchwood said that he originally left with some buddies of his, and I guess they just made their way up there. He found a job, and that was that. Until we met at the Grand Galloping Gala, that is."

"The Grand Galloping Gala? Isn't that the biggest event of the year? Oh, how romantic! How in the world did you get invited to such an event?"

"I know Twilight, and Twilight knows the Princess."

"Uh-huh," she smirked.

"And Torchwood was working for a very prominent artist at the time, so he got to come along too. It was like love at first sight, if there is such a thing."

"You make it sound as if he's switched employment. Has he? Was he fired because he's a thestral? Of course I'm thrilled that thestrals are returning, as you say, but I'm afraid there's just no avoiding such prejudice."

"Well, yes and no. It's a long story."

"Well, I have the time. Still, best to give me the condensed version."

"Alright, I guess. He used to work in Vanhoover as Graphite Sketch's butler. He's a very prestigious artist with his own gallery. Graphite found out about his secret a long time ago and kind of used it as blackmail leverage to make him work harder for less pay. He quit over a year ago. But now that the cat's out of the bag, none of it really matters. In fact, the two are getting along pretty well now. I bet he'd take him back for regular wages, if it came down to it. You know Graphite's going to be his best colt at the wedding? Anyway, Torchwood actually moved to Ponyville after we first started dating, and I gave him a job there."

"That _is_ quite a story," Mom agreed, finally pulling the bandage taught. She'd taken such labors to dress it properly, I was almost afraid to move and ruin her hard work. Even so, she urged me to my hooves to make sure I could stand. "Hmm... I'm no nurse, but I think you should be alright to walk on it. Just keep most of the pressure off, yes? Good." She didn't wait for answers to those kinds of questions. Neither did Dad, come to think about it. I wondered if I'd adopt some of Torchwood's habits once we were living together. Would he adopt some of mine?

Suddenly, a deafening explosion echoed through the valley, shaking the ground. I braced my forehooves, catching myself in time. Mom had no trouble keeping her balance, though one of her small creations suffered. It toppled from the one side table, somehow crammed into the tent, and cracked. Mom didn't even bat an eye at the damaged piece. "What in Equestria?"

"I know that sound." I almost chuckled at the thought. I'd been becoming very aquainted with that thunderous noise. It was Rainbow's trademark move. Sonic Rainboom. She'd had it in her after all. "They're back."

"I'll go see about that." Mother strode dutifully out of the tent to make sure the coast was clear. I appreaciated her concern, but I was already certain that it was my friends whom had arrived. Positive that we weren't in danger, I gingerly tested out my ankle, and limped to the exit more slowly. I was surprised to find a thick swarm of ponies gathered in the center of the encampment. The place had looked so sparse at first that I wasn't even aware this many remained. I looked to Mother for answers, wondering what the commotion was about. She shrugged in response. Thinking the pegasus and her rainboom could be the source of all the hubbub, I looked for Rainbow Dash in the crowd, but there were too many thestrals blocking my view. I pouted, about to give up when the crowd rippled. Somepony was parting the waters.

Dad's pale form emerged, but the familiar dark coat that followed made my heart skip a beat. Torchwood beamed, chest puffed out upon eyeing me. I took one feeble, shaky step forward, cuing him to sprint to my side. I met him halfway on my three good legs. I could feel icy, protective eyes on us, and I knew Dad was watching our reunion. But a reassuring warmth seeping into my mind from the other side also told me that Mom approved. I tried ignoring them both by throwing myself deeper into his strong arms. He was more than willing to keep me there. Dad eventually cleared his throat, rudely interrupting. I glared at him over Torchwood's shoulder, but he impatiently motioned for us to break up. I reluctantly pulled myself away. I wasn't sure what came next. Torchwood spared me the trouble of initiating conversation.

"Oh, no! What happened to you?" His troubled eyes rested on the bandages which encased my right wing. He tenderly stroked the sling holding it up.

"A little manticore incident," I confessed with an embarrassed blush. He knelt down to examine my ankle. I didn't protest.

"Lay down," he ordered.

"It doesn't hurt," I protested. "I can walk on it just fine. Mom says-"

"Just lie down," he repeated. "Please?" Baffled, I did as I was told. Dad's eyes narrowed, and he moved in close to watch. I could tell he was eager to intervene the second Torchwood overstepped his welcome. "Now, stretch out your leg, the injured one, and hold still. This won't hurt at all." I moved my bandaged hoof away from my body, and though I hadn't been told to do so, lifted my injured wing as high as I could without removing the sling or damaging it further. Torchwood moved a few paces away, faced me, and closed his eyes in deep concentration. This could only mean one thing: he was going to use his fire.

"Now, just hold on one minute, young colt," Dad firmly addressed. He obviously wanted to know what he was up to before he actually tried anything, escpecially on his little filly. Torchwood paid him no mind, and I wasn't sure whether that was the smart or idiotic thing to do at the moment. Either way, it made no difference. Gentle, flickering flames sparked from the base of his forehooves, and swiftly but quietly made their way over to me. They were much more calm and peaceful than his usual raging pyre. Their warmth enveloped my whole body before Dad could do a thing to stop it. He took a few steps forward, but I watched through the fluttering blaze as Mom held him back. Unlike my uneasy father, she was curious and willing to go along with Torchwood's judgement.

"It's okay, Dad," I assured, a stray tongue of fire flaring up into my mouth as I spoke. I almost contradicted myself by choking on the smoke it produced. Luckily, Mom also nodded for him to continue. I didn't think that Torchwood had any intentions of stopping in the first place, but nodded back to acknowledge her permission. The fire around me grew higher, more intense. The heat was welcome on this windy day. Thestrals are extremely sensitive to the cold.

There was a vague tingling in my ankle and wing that almost stung, but I was so caught up in trying to identify the unusual sensation that I didn't notice any pain. The heat grew more and more intense, focused specifically on those areas. The light produced by the flames, too, became more concentrated. It was an extremely curious process, and my eyes were fixated. I only looked away when the light became unbearably bright. The next thing I knew, the bandages were gone. Not even a scar was left in their wake. He'd healed the injuries!

Torchwood smiled down on me, offering me his hoof. I took it, letting him pull me to my hooves. Neither my wing nor my leg felt tender in the slightest.

"How did you...?" Twilight bounded over, thrilled at the thestral magic she'd witnessed.

"A new technique I've been working on," he winked. I beamed.

"Thank you."

"I can't have my bride-to-be walking up the aisle in bandages," he joked.

"You've... healed her?" Dad couldn't quite understand what he'd seen. I held out my wing for him to examine. He was thoroughly impressed, I knew, though he maintained a blank expression. Torchwood bowed his head to affirm Dad's assumption.

"It doesn't hurt at all," I told him, flexing my wing in every possible direction to demonstrate. Finally, Dad turned to Torchwood, who stood at attention. He looked like a soldier that was about to be drilled by the captain of the royal guard. Dad shattered that image when he sidled up close to him and slung a wing around his back as a sign of affection. Knowing Dad, that was the closest thing to a hug anypony but his direct family would ever recieve. Torchwood's eyes bulged in surprise, not expecting such a reaction.

"Thank you," Dad said, sucking up his pride. "You're alright, kid. You're alright."

"Th-thank _you_, sir," Torchwood stuttered, still in shock.

"I'll have none of this 'sir' business. My name is Wind Storm. It always has been and always will be. Got it?"

"Yes, si- I mean, Mr. Storm."

"Hmph. Close enough." I was so thrilled that they were finally getting along that I bounded up between them both and initiated a group hug. Mom followed suit until our whole family was together. Twilight stood a short distance away, smiling giddily as she watched our reunion. The rest of the camp errupted into a clamor of cheers and congratulatory whistles. I was too happy to be embarrassed at this point. "This doesn't mean that I won't be watching you closely," Dad went on.

"Dad!" I groaned.

"You take care of my daughter now, you hear me, son?"

"I will love and cherish her for as long as I live," he vowed. I nuzzled him to let him know the feeling was mutual.

"Then you have my blessing."

"And mine," Mom hummed in an almost sing-song voice.

"Now, young lady," Dad said in a voice loud enough for the whole camp to hear. At first I thought he was addressing me, but then he turned to Twilight. "I have been led to believe that you are in charge of relocating the thestrals?"


	6. Chapter 6: Settling In

**Chapter 6**

**Settling In**

**A/N: You guys get an early upload since I won't be here next week ;)**

The whole camp came back with us, but I brought Mom and Dad back to my place. It wasn't really designed to house so many ponies, but we would make do. I wasn't about to let my parents go back to sleeping in tents, for sure. I temporarily converted my studio into a bedroom by moving an armchair in (there wasn't room for anything bigger). Therefore, Mom and Dad would use my room, which had a bed large enough to accommodate them both.

I was glad to find that Mom wasn't bothered in the slightest by my pet snake. Heckley took a shining to Dad, who approved of my choice of pet. There were no problems on this end. On the other hoof, I still had to introduce them to Blaze. He was still at the library with Spike. I left my parents just long enough to go fetch my young friend.

After being away from them for so long, I didn't want to be away any longer than was necessary. I flew to cut down the time, noting with pleasure how strong my previously crippled wing felt. I had to be more careful to watch where I was going. Now that the thestral camps had been temporarily moved to Ponyville, the skies were far more crowded. I encountered a couple of old acquaintances, but as much as I'd have liked to stop and chat, I didn't have the time.

Though it wasn't very far, the flight to the library seemed to take an eternity before I finally arrived. This time, I didn't even bother to stop and knock. Twilight was absent, as she was currently preoccupied with registering the new arrivals at the "headquarters" set up next to the camp. Spike and Blaze were shelving books when I came in.

"How'd it go?" Spike asked, placing his last volume in the non-fiction section.

"We found them," I panted.

"Your parents?" Blaze's eyes shone with both excitement and nervousness.

"And the rest of them," I affirmed. "Rainbow and Dad scouted the entire Everfree to pick up all the remaining stragglers. Twi's registering them now."

"How many more?"

"Almost a third of what we had before."

"So another hundred thestrals? Where is Twilight going to put all these guys?" Spike burst, arms crossed in exasperation.

"More like fifty, if that," I corrected. "But it's not that bad. Rumors are going around that Celestia's got a big plan to help things along."

"Yeah? What's she planning?"

"Oh, I don't know, Spike. They're just rumors."

"Okay. Well, I guess this means you've gotta go now."

"Yeah, we do. Come on, Blaze."

"I'm coming. See ya, Spike."

"Tomorrow at Art Life," Spike reminded with a wink. Blaze waved acknowledgement upon having clambered up onto my back. I took off so violently he was almost unbalanced. I quickly leveled out to correct my mistake. Blaze's tiny wings flapped for all they were worth, almost buzzing from the energy. Their small contribution of power was enough to right him. Seeing as he was still safe, I went on, just a little slower.

"So... what are your parents like? Do they like dragons?"

"It's hard to find a thestral who doesn't, Blaze."

"But do you think they'll like _me_?"

"Blaze, they're going to _love_ you."

"How do you know?"

"Who wouldn't like you, Blaze? You're sweet, kind, easy to get along with... the list goes on and on!"

"What if that's not enough for them?"

"Blaze,_ I_ love you. That should be good enough for my parents, too. And I know my parents. If my dad will tolerate Torchwood, he'll practically adopt you!" I caught Blaze beaming from out of the corner of my eye.

Art Life appeared on the ground below, and I arched into a dive. Blaze held on for dear life as I finally pulled up, just feet above the ground. Mom or Dad must've been watching out the window, because no sooner had I landed than the front door opened. The wooden "OPEN" sign clanked as Dad held the door open for Mom. The two trotted out, beaming at my young companion. Blaze's confidence withered away as soon as they stepped out. He slid off my back, but cowered behind my foreleg.

"Mom, Dad, I'd like you to meet-"

"You must be Blaze," Mom finished for me, bending down to his level. She must not have looked so intimidating anymore, because Blaze straightened up a little.

"And you're Mrs. Vase?"

"Call me Porcelain," she winked with a broad smile.

"It looks like we have a young flyer in the works," Dad beamed. He puffed out his chest with pride, unconsciously making himself look bigger. Blaze shuddered in his looming shadow.

"M-Mr. Storm?"

"You'll call me Wind Storm, you hear?"

"Yes sir."

"Ah, ah! No 'sir.' Just Wind Storm."

"Yes, Wind Storm."

"Good. Tell me, son, are you flying yet?" Of course Dad, being an expert pilot, tried to strike up a conversation by talking about his talent.

"Um... no, not exactly..." Blaze averted his eyes.

"Hmm, well, we'll fix that soon enough."

"Dad, we're at my house, not flight camp," I reminded.

"Who says it can't be both?"

"Mr. Storm!" We all turned to watch Rainbow Dash swoop down.

"Dash? What're you doing here?"

"I just came back from clearing something with Twilight, and I have a proposition for you, sir," Rainbow beamed.

"What kind of proposition?"

"Well, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna invited all you thestrals to participate in this year's Equestria Games. And since you're such a good flyer..." A grin spread onto my own face, though Dad didn't understand my excitement. I doubted he even knew what the Equestria Games were. "We'd like you to coach the thestral group this year. And compete in one of the events, of course."

"Is that so?"

"Oh, Dad, you have to do it! It's such a huge honor!" I excitedly squealed. He looked me over, getting an idea of the responsibility being offered to him. He seemed to consider it for a moment, and finally nodded.

"Very well."

"YES!" Rainbow flipped in the air.

"On one condition," Dad interjected, stopping Rainbow mid-arc. I wasn't sure how she was still up in the air, upside down as she was. She flipped back over momentarily. "I want Acrylic and Torchwood competing with me."

"Really?" I jumped.

"Why not? It'd be a good way for me to spend time with my son-in-law. He seems to have speed. And of course I want you there. You're my daughter, and not to mention one of the most skilled flyers I've ever had the honor of teaching."

"You mean it?"

"Do I strike you as the sarcastic type?" Indeed, he didn't.

"I'm up for it, and I'm sure Torchwood will agree. What do you think, Rainbow? Can it be arranged?"

"There are three ponies on each team per event. It works out perfectly!"

"Great!"

"Now you just have to decide what team you want to belong to. I'm going for the Aerial Relay, myself."

"Aerial Relay, huh? I'm assuming that needs serious speed?"

"Oh yeah," the pegasus smirked.

"Agility?"

"Absolutely." I could tell Dad was hoof-pumping on the inside by the twinkle in his eyes. Speed and stunts were right up his alley.

"Sign us up for the relay, Dash," I winked.

"You got it," she answered.

"The Equestria Games, huh? Congratulations! That's huge!" Mom pressed in to hug us.

* * *

Wind Storm jumped as he watched his wife press close to their eldest. He finally placed the look in his daughter's eyes in an epiphany. It was the same look he saw in his wife every day. She'd started looking like that after they had their first foal. It was a mother's understanding.

Wind Storm looked back down at the young dragon Blaze. Was that what he was to Acrylic? A son? Casting the matter of biological family, and even species aside, Wind Storm looked down on the hatchling in a new light. If he was that close to Acrylic, then the dragon was just as important to him. He was practically a grandfather! Wow, was he that old?

Wind Storm snapped out of those thoughts and looked the baby over more closely. This dragon would be his pride and joy. He'd be flying in no time, that was for sure. Wind Storm had never had the pleasure of raising a boy before. He wasn't quite sure what he was supposed to do. How should he react? How should he treat him? It was probably a good idea to get to know him, first. At least that would give him an inkling of what to do.

* * *

"Hey, ya'll!" a familiar voice called. Everypony turned as the orange mare with a strong southern accent and an old cowgirl hat ran up.

"Applejack!" I called.

"I heard your parents were in town, and I wanted to be the first to welcome ya to Ponyville! Though it looks like Rainbow here beat me to it."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Dad nodded. "I'm Wind Storm, and this is my wife, Porcelain Vase."

"It's an honor, sir, ma'am." I don't think I'd ever heard AJ sound so formal, except maybe for addressing the princesses. "I'm Applejack. And on behalf of the Apple family, I'd like to invite ya'll to dinner over at Sweet Apple Acres!"

"But AJ, we just ate lunch," I countered.

"Acrylic? That was hours ago." I looked up at the sky, and realized with a start that it really was almost time to eat again.

"Oh."

"I don't want to impose," Wind Storm tried to decline.

"Not at all! We Apples love meeting new folks! And all the others are gonna be there, too."

"It'd be a good opportunity to get you acquainted with all my friends," I pointed out. There was no point in arguing with AJ when she had her mind made up, especially when it came to food.

"Well, in that case, lead on, Miss."

"Yee haw! Come on, ya'll! Supper's gonna get cold! That includes you, Rainbow Dash."

"I wish I could, but I'm supposed to meet up with Tanzi for dinner."

"You two are getting along, huh?" When thestrals were first being placed in homes, I suggested that she specifically ask for my old friend Tanzanite Miner. She'd taken my suggestion, and though I never really got a straight answer about how things were going, I got the impression that they were becoming fast friends. Tanzi, however, was still a little shy around other pony types, and even after warming up to Rainbow, refused to join in other activities involving anypony else. She preferred to stick with her clique of thestral girls.

"I think we hit it off pretty well," Rainbow affirmed.

"Well, why don'tcha bring her along?"

"She's not really into that sort of thing."

"Just tell her that Wind Storm's going to be there. She'll be along," I assured.

"I'll give it a shot," Rainbow shrugged, zipping off once more.

"The farm's this way, ya'll," AJ waved, disappearing over the hill. Blaze moved to climb up on my back, but I was pleasantly surprised when Dad scooped him up instead. With a smile, I pressed close to Torchwood, and walked by his side all the way to Sweet Apple Acres.


	7. Chapter 7: Wild Flower

**Chapter 7**

**Wild Flower**

**A/N: The characters Wild Flower, Cedar, Nova and Honeysuckle all belong to my sister. I've played with their personalities a bit, but still used with permission ;)**

The jangling of a bell woke me up. I blinked my eyes open from sleep, and gave a hearty yawn. I rubbed my eyes, and groggily slid out of the armchair. It wasn't the most comfortable sleeping arangement, but if it fit all three of us in the house, I was willing to put up with it. I realized that the bells I heard must have meant somepony at the door, and tried to wake myself up enough to look presentable to my customer. Luckily, it was just Spike arriving for his and Blaze's appointment. My orange dragon friend had, in fact, opened the door.

"Good morning," I yawned again.

"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you," Blaze blushed.

"It's more a question of why you _didn't _wake me up. Look at the time! I was supposed to have opened up half an hour ago!"

"Porcelain did that for you. I helped, too. She went to go visit Fluttershy this morning." I remembered that the two had hit it off at Applejack's dinner last night.

"Is Dad still upstairs?"

"No, Rainbow came by and wanted him to help arrange something for the Equestria games. He left with her about an hour ago."

"Good," I nodded, drowsily making my way upstairs. That meant I wouldn't risk waking anypony when I went to feed Heckley in the morning. He'd be cross with me for delivering his breakfast so late as it was.

Indeed, the snake wasn't on his usual perch, but impatiently waiting on the bed. He hissed indignantly when I finally appeared at the top of the stairwell, and made a few tight circles of irritation on the spot. "Sorry, bub," I sighed, delivering the food in the usual spot. "Eat quick. We're late, and I need you to help me get some more paint supplies." I made my own paint here at Art Life. Typically, I'd buy the materials from the venders around town, but lately I'd been picking the flowers myself. There was a nice spot I liked to get them from in one of the sunnier spots in the Everfree. Those plants produced the most beautifully intense red I'd ever encountered. Heckley decided that the prospect of a field trip made up for the late meal, and scarfed down the insects he preyed on.

I removed my tye-dyed saddlebags from the wardrobe while I was up there, as well as my plaid hat. After nearly losing it the other day, I'd made sure to put it back last night. I adjusted the saddlebags so I didn't have to fool with them later, and returned downstairs. My stomach was complaining, so I fixed myself a quick breakfast. I gobbled up the muffin, topped off with a daisy and washed it all down with a glass of milk. Heckley was coming down just as I put the dishes in the sink. He moved with extreme grace, even down the stairs.

"You ready?" I was answered with an affirmative nod. I started down the hall, and didn't even have to stop for him to board. Heckley shot up my foreleg as I passed, winding his way up until he was comfortably situated around my neck. Making sure the boys didn't need anything, I started to flip the CLOSED sign around.

"What are you doing?" Spike called. They'd started by replenishing the missing inventory out front, and a couple of jars clanked as he set an additional sketchbook beside them. I winced, noticing how close the glass was being pushed to the edge. Was this a good idea after all? Maybe I shouldn't leave them on their own. Caught up in these thoughts, it took me a moment to realize that he was addressing me.

"I'm just making sure nopony walks in on you," I assured, flipping the sign over.

"Aw, you don't have to worry about that, Acrylic," Spike almost laughed, returning to his work of placing drawing pads.

"We'll keep the shop open for you," Blaze agreed, removing the broom from behind the counter.

"Are you boys sure about this?" I stiffened. Blaze had never handled such a large responsibility before. Come to think of it, I didn't think Spike had either. Spike sometimes watched the library for Twilight, but that didn't involve any exchange of money. And he didn't really have to do much more than fill out a check out slip, either.

"Sure thing," Blaze answered.

"It'll be a piece of cake," Spike assured, returning for more merchandise.

"Alright..." I slowly consented, thinking it over. "But in that case, let me give you a quick run-down of how the place works. The prices should already be labeled, but if they aren't, there's a catalogue here in the back that lists everything." I briefly moved around to point out the volume.

"Got it," Blaze nodded.

"Keep the money in the register, sorted like it's labeled," I directed.

"Okay," Spike said.

"And just in case somepony comes in with an order, the forms are over here."

"We got it!" Heckley slid off my back and impatiently waited at the door, looking at it pleadingly.

"Well, alright, if you're sure you can handle it..."

"Easy peasy," Spike boasted.

"In that case, I guess we'll be off."

"Bye!"

"See ya later!"

"Maybe Heckley should stay back with you. He knows the run of the place." My snake didn't take to that idea very well, and zipped out the mail slot before I could catch him.

"Don't worry," Spike insisted, pushing me out the door.

"Everything's under control," Blaze put in.

"Have a good time!"

"Take care!" Spike nudged me over the threshold, and shut the door on me. The CLOSED sign flipped around to read OPEN once more in the window. I sighed, and reluctantly walked down the hill to catch up to Heckley. I wished Torchwood hadn't been out today. Then they could at least have some adult supervision. Perhaps Mom or Dad would come in early. There wasn't much else I could do but fret. I shook myself out of it. At some point or another, I'd have to learn to trust him. Blaze was getting older. He could handle it. Spike was even with him. And after all, it was only for an hour. What was the worst that could happen? My heart dropped again as my wild imagination began playing worst case scenarios.

I finally found Heckley at the base of the slope, waiting under a tree not far from the Carousel Boutique. My snake didn't dare cross the yard on his own, or at least not with the cat Opalescence around. I retrieved him, and we crossed together without incident.

Unlike Blaze, Heckley loved my flying. As a snake, it wasn't often that he left the ground. He let his upper body stretch out, as though he was trying to stick his head out of an invisible window to catch the air. Occasionally, he'd even let his forked tongue hang out. I laughed at his unintentional antics. Out of all the pets in Equestria, I'd chosen a rather comical one. Perhaps the most ridiculous trait was that he liked to paint. With his tail. Yes, you heard me right. I didn't even teach him to do that. He picked it up all on his own.

The flight seemed to go quickly, even gliding gently above the white, misty clouds. Their cool moisture tickled the undersides of my wings and dampened my coat. My thick mane frizzed out severely in the humidity, but I brushed it back into submission upon landing. There was a small clearing coming out of nowhere on the Southeast corner of the Everfree forest that looked completely out of place, so it wasn't hard to find. It reminded me of a slice of swiss cheese with only one hole. It just didn't look right. Unbalanced, even. Artisitc critique aside, it existed, and housed the plants I'd come looking for.

The last time I was standing here, the final rays of sunlight were washing over the valley as dusk descended. Perhaps the dim lighting had thrown off my perception of the clearing, because I thought I remembered more flowers existing before I arrived. There were just a few of the bushy plants growing on the edges now, instead of the dense swatch I recalled. Had I picked that many last time? I didn't think such a quantity would even fit in my saddlebags, but I came up with no other explaination. I shrugged. It just meant I'd have to plant a couple of seeds if I wanted to keep using them for paint.

Heckley finally slid off when I came to a stop before one of the plants. It was very bushy with deep red blooms. I almost regretted that I had to grind up the petals for pigment, it was so pretty. I'd have to get a few of these to plant out front. Heckley looked to me, awaiting instruction.

"Alright, Heckley. I want you to start by gathering as many of these blooms as you can. Not the whole plant, but just the blooms. Got it?" He hissed affirmation, and snaked off into the deeper part of the forest where they grew a little more densely. Meanwhile, I hung back to begin uprooting some of the larger, healthier plants. I hadn't brought any pots with me, so I'd just have to be careful with the roots and hope they lasted the trip. I didn't know much about plants to know what else I could do for them. I gently placed them in the left saddlebag. Once I decided there were enough, I just went after the blossoms. These were deposited in the right side.

I filled up half of the pouch on my own, but Heckley hadn't yet returned. I snapped the top closed so the wind couldn't gather up any of my harvest, and looked around. A snake wouldn't be too easy to spot in this tall overgrowth, but it would be especially impossible in the shadowy Everfree. He hadn't gotten lost, had he? This wasn't a very well known area to me, but I didn't think there were any Everfree creatures settled this region. Still, that didn't mean they weren't out there.

"Heckley?" I took a few uneasy steps towards the trees, but stopped dead in my tracks when memories of my last manticore encounter flashed through my mind. I really, _really_ didn't want to go through that again. And this time, no pony could come to my rescue. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. But how else was I supposed to find my pet?

"What do you think you're doing? Shoo! Get away!" An angry voice echoed through the trees. It sounded like a pony. But who would be this far out, in the Everfree, no less? I suddenly forgot about the risk of facing off with monsters. Not many ponies were entirely comfortable around snakes. There was a good chance Heckley could be the cause of the outburst. If so, he could be in real danger.

I trampled any of the brush in my way, sprinting for the source of the voice. As it turned out, I didn't get far before nearly colliding with a tall, forest green stallion. He had a short, navy mane brushed back and out of the way, streaked with slender waves of lime green. His tail looked even shorter, being as thin as it was. His eyes were blue to match the majority of his hair. His muzzle was more narrow than most stallions, and shaggy hair failed to completely obscure midnight blue hooves. A tree stump with an axe embedded in its side was displayed on his hide. He wore a leather, bark-colored vest with pockets filled with everything and anything he could stuff inside. He jolted at the sight of me, but I even more so at him. Dragon wings caught my eye. Thestrals were popping up everywhere!

"Oh! Excuse me, Ma'am," he stuttered, backing away to give me space.

"No, you're fine; it was my fault. I'm sorry." I knew this stallion hadn't been the source of the cry, because the voice I heard belonged to a female.

"Get out of here!" the voice shrieked again. Without so much as a glance at the other, we both took off running in the same direction. This time, I really did collide with someone, that someone being Heckley. He was flying out of the bush, somehow propelling himself into the air. He smacked into my throat and sheer momentum curled him around my neck. The sudden impact caused me to jerk, throwing myself off balance and tumbling back down to the ground. I bowled into the stallion's legs again, but he somehow managed to maintain his footing and nimbly jump to the side. He wasn't safe yet, as another figure charged from the woods. This flying form didn't see us in time, and tripped on me, sending the three of us sprawling. Through all of it, the green stallion somehow remained untouched in the end.

I released an audiable groan in perfect sync with Heckley's pursuer. My world was too fuzzy to make out anything, so I shut my eyes and rubbed my head.

"Are you girls alright?" the stallion wondered. The hoofsteps sounded near, though they were cushioned by the many layers of foliage scattered on the ground.

"Fine, Cedar," the mare moaned. I finally let my eyes flutter open, and looked around for Heckley. He was fine, aside from being tangled in my forehooves. I brushed him off, and began picking myself up.

"Sis?" my companion gasped. My eyes shot open. I hadn't yet gotten a good look at the second pony.

"WILD FLOWER!" I brought the both of us right back down to the ground as I tackled her in a hug. She'd been moving to do the same, and we met halfway so one didn't land on top of the other. My sister had a bright teal coat and a natural chocolate mane. She kept it short and straight, hanging just low enough to brush her shoulders with bangs that bobbed up above her matching brown eyes. Her tail was allowed to become more wispy than a bob, and kept it a little longer. She was just shorter than me. Her cutie mark showed two pinecones, one upright and the other leaning on its side with a bright white daisy planted between them. Like me, she was a thestral.

"What're you doing out here?"

"Looking for you, Mom and Dad! I heard thestrals were moving back, and couldn't find you!"

"Mom and Dad are with me in Ponyville! I brought them back yesterday. _We_ were looking for _you_!"

"How are they?"

"Fine, but worried about you. Where'd you go? I didn't know you moved away from the encampment until yesterday. What's the big idea, moving away and not even visiting me?"

"I ended up in Baltimare, but I did look for you. You moved to Appleloosa, didn't you?"

"No, no, no! Ponyville!"

"But you said it was the closest town to the Everfree."

"On the north side," I groaned. "You went south."

"Oh. That makes more sense." The stallion with us awkwardly cleared his throat. I'd almost forgotten that he was there. We both turned to him. "Oh, right. Uh, Acrylic, meet Cedar. Cedar, meet my sister, Acrylic."

"Elder sister, to be exact," I clarified, stepping up to shake his hoof. "Nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," he formally nodded.

"_YOU_!" Wild Flower's eyes locked onto my back where Heckley was still recovering. She started to lunge, but I interrupted her not only to protect Heckley but also to keep her from bowling me over again. I'd ended up on the ground once too many times as it was.

"Hold it right there, Missy."

"But it's-"

"_He_ is my pet." She froze for a minute, then straightened, nose wrinkled.

"That's just like you, Acrylic. A cold, slimy snake as a pet?"

"He's not cold and slimy, he's cool and smooth. There's a difference. It's called texture."

"Ah, yes. The artist knows all about that, doesn't she?"

"She does. And what would the fru-fru flower girl choose as a pet, if not a snake?"

"I am not fru-fru! And I just so happen to have a _beautiful _hummingbird. Hey, where _is_ Honeysuckle? And Nova, for that matter?"

"Is everypony okay? I heard yelling," a voice wheezed. I looked up to the heavy flapping, and reeled back. She had a dragon companion too?

This youngster was Spike and Blaze's age, perhaps slightly older. His scales were midnight blue, where a lime green underbelly stuck out like a sore hoof. His slightly rounded spines almost matched Spike's, though these were colored a far more vibrant green. They were just a little shorter than Spike's, too, and stretched all the way down to the base of his tail. His ears were blue like the rest of him, ending in three clean points. His tail was fashioned in a similar manner, ending not in a spade but three small, grabby tendrils. Two friendly lemon-lime eyes looked down at me from a branch above. Unlike Blaze, this dragon was already flying. Though they were about the same age, I didn't realize how much taller this hatchling stood until he straightened up from the crouched position on the branch. He was at least a head higher than either Spike or Blaze, and was much slimmer than either. This contributed to his older appearance, but he still probably wouldn't reach the height of Torchwood's knees.

Suddenly, a tiny hummingbird dropped out of the sky beside the dragon. It was a beautiful green and red bird small enough to perch on one of my ears. A long, slender beak reached out from adorable puffy cheeks. It looked at me and chirped in greeting. I cocked my head in reply. In finally flitted down do land on Wild Flower's head. She didn't flinch under the weight. The bird was so tiny I doubted she even noticed her presence. I looked back up at the dragon, who was quizzically staring me down.

"Nova, get down here," Wild Flower called. The blue dragon I assumed must be Nova flapped down and landed neatly. He shambled up to Wild Flower, unintimidated but curious. "Nova, this is my sister." His eyes widened, and his lips pursed into an 'O' shape with realization.

"You're Acrylic!"

"That's right. Nova, isn't it?"

"The one and only!"

"See? You two'll get along fine. You like dragons, right Acrylic?"

"Of course! I have a little friend of my own, now."

"You have a dragon companion?" Wild Flower gasped in disbelief.

"Is that so hard to believe?" I sniffed.

"Kinda... yeah."

"How cool is that?" Nova exclaimed.

"He's about your age, too," I added. "His name's Blaze. And I have a friend who has a dragon assistant, too. His name's Spike. Goodness! We're going to have a whole troop of you guys hanging around town!"

"Awesome!"

"Where'd you get a dragon?"

"Blaze is Ignition's youngest."

"Ignition! Well, that explains it." Nova interrupted us.

"Wild Flower told me all about you. You're a really good artist, by the way. She showed me some pictures you did of her flowers."

"You kept those?" I grinned, giving her a teasing look.

"Well, what else was I supposed to do with them? Besides, I needed something to decorate the house with. To be honest, I was pretty overwhelmed at first. Those pony cottages sure are bigger than the thestral tents back home."

"So you really did move. Mom and Dad told me so, but I had a hard time believing it. So Baltimare, eh? You didn't go too far from home, either. That's a fairly big city. You're probably living on the outskirts in the country, am I right?"

"You know me. Nothing will pry me from my flowers. Not even that nuissance you call a pet."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your snake was trying to steal my autumn sage!"

"You mean these red blooms?" I held one up that was still stuck in her mane.

"Yes, those."

"Well technically, they're not yours. They were growing wild when I found them. And secondly, don't blame Heckley. I asked him to help me gather them. They make great paint pigment, you know."

"You're grinding them into _pigment_?!"

"What's wrong? Are they endangered are something?"

"Well... no... but they're so pretty! How could you do such a thing?"

"Where else am I supposed to get my pigment, from beets and berries?"

"I've seen you do it before."

"Not for the quality stuff, you knucklehead." I pulled her into a noogie before it evolved into a hug. I let out a loud sigh. "I missed you." Finally, she hugged me back.

"I missed you too." The pony Cedar shifted again.

"Pardon me? I'm very happy for you both, but could we possibly move things along? The silence in the Everfree is making me... uneasy."

"The quiet bugs you?"

"Have you ever heard the Everfree forest completely devoid of all sound?"

"Good point. Come on, everyone. I'll take you all to Ponyville."


	8. Chapter 8: Storm Family Reunion

**Chapter 8**

**Storm Family Reunion**

We all landed in front of Art Life. Nova had been hanging around the back with Cedar, but Honeysuckle was small enough to burrow herself in Wild Flower's bangs and catch a ride. I folded my wings as Wild Flower looked over my shop. Her eyes told me she approved, but as my sister, she couldn't very well outright say that.

"Art Life? Really?"

"I'll take that as a compliment." I moved to open the door, and Nova was the first to zoom inside. At first, the two other dragons didn't notice us.

"Welcome to Art Life," I heard Spike say.

"Hey, boys!" I called.

"Acrylic! You're back already?"

"With company. Anypony come in while I was out?"

"Cloud Kicker came in and bought a few things, and Mrs. Cake asked if you'd do a new flier for Sugar Cube Corner. We left the form in the folder, just like you said."

"Wow. You two did a great job!" I finally got a good look around my shop to see that it was in tip top shape. Everything had been tidied up while they were in charge, just proving how disorganized I was. I kept the place in what I considered to be a presentable state, but these dragons had taken it as far as to straighten every sketchbook and paint jar in the place. The peeling price tags had been replaced with fresh ones, and the window pane shone in my eyes, now free of dust. There wasn't a speck of dirt or grime to be found on the floor, not even in the darkest corners. This place hadn't looked so good since last spring cleaning, when Fluttershy had come over to help. "Scratch that. This place looks better than great. Astounding? Amazing? I can't find words!"

"You don't always keep it this clean? Shame on you."

"You know what? Why don't you just shut it?" I elbowed her.

"Are you going to make me?"

"Maybe I will."

"I'd like to see you try."

"How cool is this place, eh?" The blue dragon interrupted our sibling rivalry. Nova flapped around the room, examining every shelf. Spike and Blaze's eyes locked onto their fellow hatchling, mouths ajar. Nova finally came to rest on the countertop, below which the two other youngsters were standing. They turned to stare at him. Nova was taking it a lot better than they were, and casually waved. "Hi!"

"Nova, get off the counter!" Wild Flower scolded. Nova chuckled but obediently glided down. Spike shook his head to recover from the stupor, and eagerly held out a claw for a welcoming clawshake.

"Hi! I'm Spike! And this is Blaze!"

"Good to meet ya." Nova ignored his claw and went right in for a rather vigorous tail shake. Blaze still hadn't come out of the daze, and the tail shake jostled him even more. Nova's face fell when he looked down at his new dizzy-eyed comrades. "Come on, guys. You have _got_ to work on your tail shakes."

"This is so exciting!" Spike cheered when he finally recovered. "_Three_ dragons in Ponyville? Now we're getting somewhere."

"We're gonna be best buddies, I can tell," Nova grinned, bending between the two to deliver a giant bear hug.

"Spike? Blaze?" I finally caught their attention, and all three dragons turned around, still interlocked with Nova's arms draped over their shoulders. "I need to introduce you to somepony. Meet my sister, Wild Flower. And her friend Cedar," I quickly added as the stallion drew nearer.

"You're Wild Flower?"

"You've got your whole family back together!"

"And just in time for the-" Spike clapped a claw over Blaze's mouth before he could finish. I gave him a grateful wink. I wanted to deliver the news myself.

"Just in time for what?" Wild Flower prompted.

"Can I talk to you outside?" I didn't wait for an answer, and hauled her back out myself.

"What is it?" I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"There's something I have to tell you." I shuffled my hooves, but joy gleamed in my eyes.

"Yeah, I got that much when you dragged me out here, thanks. Now are you going to tell me what it is?"

"I know it's going to come as a shock, but I have been trying to get ahold of you to say something before..."

"What. _Is_. It?" I smiled and looked at the ground, chewing my lip. Then, I slowly pulled at the chain around my neck, drawing attention to the sapphire-encrusted engagement ring. Wild Flower's eyes grew huge.

"You're?"

"Yeah."

"Oh. My. _GOSH_!" she squealed, jumping on me in a big hug. I hugged back, relieved that the news had gone over so well. "Acrylic, I'm _so_ happy for you!"

"Thanks."

"Who is he? Is he here? It he handsome?"

"Of course he's here. And, yes, I think he's quite handsome," I blushed. "His name's Torchwood. He's a fire dancer."

"A fire dancer? Well, well, well. You do have a type, don't you?"

"I don't have a type," I defended.

"Oh, sure you do. _He's_ your type." Wild Flower was busy jumping around to release the excited energy, reminding me of Pinkie Pie. "When's the wedding?"

"About two months away."

"Do you have your dress picked? Who are your bridesmaides? If I know you, you've already got a color scheme picked out. You have to tell me everything!"

"I will, but I want to ask a favor first."

"Anything! Well, almost anything. Ask anyway."

"I want you to organize the flower arrangements," I requested.

"Me?"

"Please? I can't think of any pony who could do a better job."

"You really mean it?"

"I wouldn't ask if I wasn't serious. Will you _please_ do this for me?"

"Oh my gosh, yes! Of course I will! How could I say no to my sister on her special day?"

"That's a relief," I sagged. "And one more thing."

"Yes?"

"You're also my Maid of Honor."

"Seriously?!"

"No, I'm being sarcastic. Yes, seriously!"

"Thank you!" She practically leapt into my arms at the idea of such a role.

"I don't think I could go up there without my friends and family behind me."

"How are Mom and Dad taking it?"

"Mom's thrilled, and Dad's tolerating Torchwood. So far, so good."

"That sounds like Dad," she laughed. "Where are they, anyway? I can't wait to see them again."

"The last I heard, Mom was still out with Fluttershy, and Dad was away with Rainbow Dash. Though, I thought they'd be back by now."

"Who are Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash?"

"They're two of my best friends here. I can't wait to introduce you to everypony!"

"_And_ Torchwood. I'm dying to meet my future brother-in-law!"

"Let's go do a quick fly-over, and I'll introduce you as we go. But first, let's pay Rarity a visit. She's just right down the road."

"Rarity?"

"You'll love her. She's the most amazing fashion designer in Equestria! You'd just adore her floral prints!" I knew Wild Flower wasn't big on clothes, but this caused her ears to perk up.

"We'll see about that."

"Well, come on! Time's a wastin'!"

"Wait a sec. I'll get Cedar. Do you think Nova would be alright staying here with those other two dragons?"

"Sure. They've been on their own all morning. In fact, Spike and Blaze might like to give Nova the grand tour of Ponyville. Give them some guy time, you know?"

"Sounds good. But what about Honeysuckle? I don't trust your snake enough to leave them alone."

"His name is Heckley," I corrected, "and he wouldn't dare hurt her. He prefers insects, anyway."

"I don't believe you."

"Fine, let her tag along. I'm sure Fluttershy would love to meet her, anyway."

"Heckley isn't coming, is he?"

"If you keep this up, I'm going to lock the two of you in a room until you learn to get along," I huffed. Wild Flower just rolled her eyes, and walked back around to fetch Cedar. I followed her to close up the shop.

"Hey, Cedar? Acrylic's going to take me around town and introduce me to her friends. Do you want to come?"

"I'd love to," he responded, pulling himself away from the youngsters he had previously been conversing with.

"And Spike, Blaze? Why don't you show Nova around?"

"Sure thing!"

"Sounds like fun," Nova agreed.

"Let's start at Sugar Cube Corner," Blaze suggested.

"Why Sugar Cube Corner? Rarity's boutique is just down the road."

"That's the only place I really remember..." Blaze blushed. I smiled. After two weeks, he still wasn't particularly familiar with anyplace but my shop, the library and Sugar Cube Corner. "And I'm kinda hungry for a cupcake."

"Take a few bits with you," I directed, pulling a couple of coins out of the register. "You can stop there on your way."

"Thanks!" Blaze eagerly accepted the money.

"Let's go! Spike called, leading the march. All three dragons plodded out, Nova waving back from the rear.

"Come back here for dinner!" I called after them. Turning back to my guests, I started going about my duties. "I'll just close up here and we'll be off."

"Anything I can do?" Cedar offered. I was impressed at how polite this stallion was. Where did Wild Flower find this guy? For that matter, who was he? Just a friend or maybe a coworker?

"Thanks, but no thanks. I've just got to put this away..." I moved the order form folder to my studio where I'd remember it, "...put this here..." I stuck a 'be back soon' note to the front door, "...flip the sign..." I flipped the CLOSED sign around, "...shut out the lights, and we're off!" Wild Flower led the way out, Honeysuckle perched in her hair. Cedar followed her out as I extinguished the lanterns. Finally, I locked the door behind us, and headed for the boutique.

Once there, I knocked on the open door to the Carousel Boutique to alert Rarity we weren't ordinary customers. "Hello? Rarity?"

"Is that you Acrylic? Do come in. I'll be with you in a moment." Wild Flower began to scan the multitude of gowns on display. Cedar let out a whistle of surprise.

"Your friend Rarity made these?"

"Every one of them," I nodded. "Made my hat, too. She did an astounding job on my wedding dress, by the way, Wild Flower."

"She's doing your dresses?"

"You're getting married?" Cedar almost jumped. I kinda forgot to tell him.

"Two months," I happily sighed.

"I'm going to be the maid of honor!" Wild Flower squealed.

"_You're_ Acrylic's maid of honor?" Rarity stopped dead in her tracks, dropping the stack of fabrics she'd been levitating. I cleared my throat in nervousness, hoping she hadn't been expecting that role. Before I could say anything more, Rarity zoomed forth with a measuring tape. "Do be a dear and hold still then, would you?"

"What are you doing?" Wild Flower squealed, shifting away from Rarity's advance.

"Why, taking measurements, of course. I was just finishing the design of the bridesmaid gowns. Now I'm free to begin yours, dear. Hold still for just one more moment, please."

"You're going to make me a dress, just like that?"

"But of course! Acrylic's put me in charge of designing all the dresses for her bridal party. They have to be absolutely perfect! Best to get an early start, hmm? Speaking of which, Acrylic, I need you in the back to look over the designs."

"Sure thing, Rarity."

"Acrylic, would you be a dear and fetch my sketchbook? I feel an idea coming on. Hmm... what do you think? Should we weave daisies or white roses into your mane?"

"What?"

"Oh, you're right. Silly me. We'll just use both."

"_This_ is Rarity?" my exasperated sister exclaimed.

"Yes, I am Rarity, Acrylic's friend. And now, it appears, one of her bridesmaides. Oh! Where are my manners? I haven't even gotten your name!"

"Rarity, this is my sister, Wild Flower."

"Acrylic's sister? Oh, I'm just _thrilled_ to make your acquaintence! Acrylic's told me so much about you!"

"It's... good to meet you too..." she finally managed, stiffly shaking Rarity's hoof.

"I can tell we're going to be the best of friends," Rarity crooned.

"Well, I'd hope so. You're going to be working with her a lot. Wild Flower's doing our flower arrangements too."

"How wonderful! I can't tell you how excited I am to be working with you! And what better first project than your elder sister's wedding? This is perfect! I _mus_t consult with you about the bridesmaide dresses! I just can't seem to get the flower accents right."

"Well... alright. But as long as you're going to weave flowers in my mane, I want a chain of white avens."

"White what?"

"White avens."

"I'm afraid I'm not entirely sure what those are... but I'm sure we can make it work."

"And Rarity? This is Wild Flower's friend, Cedar." The poor stallion always seemed to be forgotten until brought to attention. He only dipped his head in greeting.

"Miss," he said.

"It's good to meet you, too, Cedar. Are you participating in the wedding as well?"

"No," he smiled. "Though, I would be honored to attend." He looked to me for permission. I couldn't say no to Wild Flower's vigorous nodding.

"We would love to see you there," I answered. Wild Flower looked about ready to burst with excitement.

"Splendid! Now, everypony in the back! There's a wedding to be planned!"

"Uh, Rarity? Could it wait until tomorrow? They literally just got here. I haven't gotten to show them around yet."

"Oh, alright. But be here at eight o' clock sharp tomorrow for a formal planning session. Be a dear and spread the news as you go around, would you? I'd like to see how the bridesmaid gowns fit."

"Okay, Rarity," I reluctantly agreed. I wasn't like her. Rarity wanted to get everything taken care of ASAP. I was so nervous about the whole ordeal that I tried to put it off by avoiding it altogether.

"See you tomorrow," Wild Flower called. She led the way out, followed by Cedar and finally me. Our next stop was Rainbow's house, as it was nearest. Rainbow wasn't in, evidently still out with Dad, so I left her a note to inform her of Rarity's planning session. Next, we tried Pinkie's house, but when she wasn't in either, we finally found her hard at work at Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie, thrilled at meeting the rest of my family, decided to merge my parents' Welcome party with hers. When I told her about Rarity's meeting, she promised to be there with big ideas for the wedding reception.

Pinkie didn't know where Dad was, but said that we'd better hurry if we wanted to catch up with Mom, who was about to leave Fluttershy's cottage. Though Twilight had been next on the list, we took a detour to the countryside. The two yellow ponies were just parting when Wild Flower bowled into Mom, crying happy tears. We caused such a ruckus that Fluttershy soon came whizzing back, faster than I'd ever seen her, to see what was the matter. Mom and Wild Flower were blubbering too uncontrollably to give any indecipherable answer, so I translated. When she finally understood what was going on, Fluttershy almost broke down crying with us, she was such a tender soul. In any case, she got along so well with my sister that it was hard to pry the two apart! As I predicted, Fluttershy fell in love with Honeysuckle right away. This only made it harder to separate them. We finally convinced them to split when I promised they'd meet up tomorrow at Rarity's conference. Cedar was quiet the whole time, but after introducing him, I let him be, assuming he preferred to stay at the back.

We backtracked and went to see Twilight after that, Mom clinging to us like glue. Twilight welcomed them to Ponyville, but refused to acknowledge us any further until Wild Flower and Cedar had been registered. The stress of overlooking the reintegration of a whole new pony breed was obviously stressing her. She looked so frazzled that I considered letting her off the hook for Rarity's meeting tomorrow, but Wild Flower blew that plan when she reminded me of it rather loudly from across the room. I suppose it was a good thing in the end, because Twilight looked relieved to get away from the thestral responsibilities, even just for an hour. I asked if she'd seen our father, and she directed us to Sweet Apple Acres, where she believed Rainbow and Dad had gotten caught up in helping AJ buck apples. We moved on, hoping to catch them both at once so we didn't need to make an additional trip.

It worked out perfectly. We got them all at once, literally. Dad accidentally crashed into us while he was flying, sending us tumbling into everypony else. Nopony was hurt in the end, so we all laughed it off (or in the case of a few, happily cried it off). Dad was thrilled to have both his girls back, and even more thrilled to hear that she would be my maid of honor. He was a little stiff around another stallion coming into the picture, but still gave Cedar a more-or-less warm welcome. AJ and Rainbow both promised to be there for the planning, and Mom decided that she wanted to come, too. I didn't object. The only pony left to find was Torchwood.

We checked everywhere, but no pony had seen him. We also asked for Mr. Cake, who he was supposed to be out with. (Mr. Cake and Torchwood had been spending a lot of time together these days.) The two were nowhere to be found! I finally resolved to return to Art Life and ask Spike or Blaze to send a letter to him, but we ran into them both upon mounting the hill. Torchwood gave us a queer look upon noting our train, but seemed more interested in looking beyond us. He strained to see over those of us in front.

"Torchwood, this is-"

"Cedar?" Torchwood ignored me. I didn't have the capacity to realize that I should be offended. Everypony was too busy parting for quiet stallion to be wondering such things.

"Torch?" Recognition washed over Cedar's face. The two stallions didn't exactly leap into each others arms, but they did perform a less sentimental 'guy greeting.' The rest of us watched on, baffled. Torchwood was practically dancing on the spot, and Cedar was more lively than he'd been for the whole three hours I'd known him. They were talking too fast for me to keep up with the conversation. How they deciphered it, I wasn't sure.

Torchwood finally broke away from his companion long enough to bound over to me. "Acrylic, this is Cedar Wood!"

"Cedar _Wood_? As in Torchwood Wood?"

"Torch is a very distant cousin of mine," Cedar beamed. "At least we think. The geneology was a little jumbled after so many generations."

"Oh, that doesn't matter. Biological or not, you're family." He draped a wing over Cedar's shoulder.

"That is too weird," declared Wild Flower.

"What's so weird?" I absentmindedly grinned.

"I'm dating your husband's cousin."


	9. Chapter 9: Decisions, Decisions

**Chapter 9**

**Decisions, Decisions**

Dad hadn't taken the news of Wild Flower's relationship too well, of course, but he handled it better than when he first learned I was getting married. That was to be expected, though, seeing as he didn't have to give up his other little girl just yet. Our wedding also gave him time to become familiar with this other stallion; Torchwood promptly asked Cedar to be one of his ushers. I soon learned that Mr. Cake had taken on the same role. Nova and Spike were also given those responsibilities. Blaze probably would have joined them, had he not already been assigned to be our ring bearer. That night, we set up a large table in the yard, cluttered it with plenty of food (much of it courtesy of Applejack), tracked Torchwood's parents down from the temporary camp, and had a big family reunion.

Dad and Torchwood's father, Meteor Strike, hit it off right away. My mother got along with everypony, but I couldn't help but feel that she and Rose Petal, his mother, had a special connection. Our parents, upon meeting, almost instantly began planning an engagement party. This was mostly thanks to Torchwood's folks, who wanted to be as involved in the wedding as possible. They seemed to have everything already planned out, but my parents were motivated to pitch in.

The dragons got along, of course, and Wild Flower's fears about our pets were nulled when the two spent a whole evening side by side without incident. Cedar really opened up after finding Torchwood, and I now found him to be funny, kind, and overall likable. He served as a lumberjack in Baltimare, but had grown up in the same thestral sector as Torchwood. They not only treated each other like brothers, but even acted a bit alike. Cedar had been one of the five thestrals to join Torchwood in joining Equestria, and the two tried to find their own way in Vanhoover. Torchwood eventually found a job there with Graphite Sketch, but Cedar had returned temporarily to visit family back home. After weeks of waiting, Torchwood finally recieved word that he'd met somepony and wouldn't be returning to the city. Aparently, that somepony was my sister. They both moved to Baltimare and made a living there.

Wild Flower was almost estatic upon hearing the romantic story of how I met Torchwood at the gala. Cedar, however, pushed for more recent stories, and before I knew it, we were taking turns telling the tale of the thestral uprising and the creation of the seventh element. I tried to tone down the unfavorable parts, like Torchwood becoming evil and the removal of my wings, but my parents were still aghast with shock. Wild Flower, too, looked a little worried. Torch's parents were a little more comfortable with hearing the story, since they were there when Torchwood turned. In fact, Meteor had been so worried about their son that he became one of Torchwood's 'hench ponies' just to keep an eye on him. He had been the one who helped us when we were being held captive before the invasion. Despite our reassurances that this was all in the past, my father suddenly became untrusting of Torchwood once more. I hoped that their "bonding time" before the wedding would help them become more comfortable with each other again.

Wild Flower resolved to stay over the rest of the week for the wedding planning, which meant that I'd need to haul another armchair into the art studio. However, Fluttershy later learned of the situation, and invited Wild Flower, Nova, and of course Honeysuckle to stay with her. Cedar resolved to simply stay on stand-by for when he was needed. He promised that he didn't mind the flight between here and his home.

The dragons fell asleep in a dog pile, and I was reluctant to move them. However, I promised Twilight to have Spike back before it got too dark. I gently removed the purple dragon from the stack, settled him between my wings, and carried him back to the library. Twilight tucked him into bed, but didn't hold me over very long, allowing me to return to the festivities. We stayed up most of the evening, chatting by moonlight. The dragons were content to sleep, but nopony else was tired. Mom, Wild Flower, Rose Petal and I finally called it off at around one in the morning. We had a schedule to adhere to, after all. Even after we went to sleep, the stallions could still be heard having a high old time outside.

"Alright, girls. Let's go through this one more time." Everypony else groaned. Twilight was a brilliant organizer, which is why she had been nominated to keep track of all our duties, but her double and triple checking to make sure everypony had their assignments was beginning to get under our skin.

"Let's see... Rarity is designing the wedding attire, right?"

"And it's coming along splendidly, if I do say so myself."

"Good. Applejack is catering?"

"Everythin' but the cake," she promised.

"Right. Mr. and Mrs. Cake are doing that. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are the flower girls, and Blaze will be the ring bearer. Mr. Cake is also going to be one of Torchwood's groomscolts-"

"What's a groomscolt?" Pinkie whispered.

"The same thing as an usher," I whispered back.

"Oh. I thought they might have to groom the groom. But that makes much more sense!"

"And so is Mr. Cake, Cedar, Nova, and Spike." Twilight paused for a moment, beaming at the role of her own little assistant. She shook herself out of it, returning to the list. "Mayor Ivory Scroll will be performing the ceremony. Fluttershy's bird choir will play as Acrylic walks down the aisle-"

"And I'll top it all off with a sonic rainboom!" Rainbow boldly declared.

"What's a sonic rainboom?" Wild Flower wondered. Rainbow face-hoofed, her daring finale blown by the clueless mare.

"I'll tell you later."

"And the rest of us are all gonna be the bridesmaids!" AJ finished with a happy grin.

"Not all of us. Wild Flower is going to be Acrylic's maid of honor!"

"Congratulations," Fluttershy quietly smiled.

"Is that everything?"

"I think so."

"Not quite," Mom put in. She'd been so quiet in the back we'd almost forgotten she was present. "My husband has requested to escort our daughter down the aisle."

"I'd like that," I admitted.

"Got it," Twilight nodded, adding it to her list. "Okay! That's it!"

"Finally," Rainbow muttered under her breath.

"Great! Now that everypony knows what they're doing, we can get down to business. Let's start off with Rarity. How are the dresses coming?"

"Acrylic's already approved of her wedding dress, and I have all of your bridesmaid gowns started as well. I want you all to try them all on before I add the finishing touches."

"That sounds like a good place to start. Let's get to it, girls!"

"Excellent. Your gowns are the white and blue ones just over there." Rarity gestured to the back of the room where they were left to sort through the many manequins. I stayed behind, waiting for the rest of them to try on the gowns. I had plenty of wedding catalogues to sift through in the meantime. Mom joined me to help in the decision making. Wild Flower moved to tag along with the girls, but Rarity stopped her. "Wild Flower, since you just arrived yesterday, your dress isn't quite ready, but I would like you to see what I have so far. It's this way."

"Sounds good," my sister nodded, following Rarity to another room.

"Now, what was it you wanted with your dress? White avens?"

"That's right. In fact, Acrylic told me the color scheme, and I have a ton of suggestions. You hear that, Acrylic?"

"Sure did," I replied, selecting a couple of the flower magazines in preparation. Briefly scanning one, I saw nothing in particular marked or noted, so I decided I'd have to wait for her to point out her favorites. Wild Flower didn't like standing still for so long, and tried to keep up a conversation with me from the other room.

"I think that the orange cymbidium orchids would go nicely with the other flowers, so long as you keep the other flowers toned down a bit," she suggested.

"What about this cartagena rose?" I called, noting a pretty flower in the magazine I was currently browsing.

"Absolutely NOT!" came the reply. I was quite amused when Wild Flower rushed in, a half-sewn dress still clinging to her. Flustered Rarity stormed after the pony, trying to remain polite but get her to cooperate at the same time.

"What's wrong with it?"

"Well, first of all, it's entirely the wrong shade of orange from what you showed me you wanted. I'd expect you to see that as an artist!"

"Fair enough," I consented, not really wanting to argue with her. Rarity aggitatedly dragged my sister back, but neither of us would let that hinder our conversation. "What about your cosmos? I don't see them here, but I've seen you grow those beautifully before."

"Those are too small. They'll be drowned out by the day lillies. And there's a reason why they aren't in your catalogues. Try something bigger and fuller, like golden lillies or cremons."

"I don't see the orange cremons here, Wild Flower."

"I doubt you would. Those aren't really the meant to be wedding flowers."

"What about dyed flowers? There aren't many here that are naturally the right color."

"Yeah... you could do that."

"But?"

"Well, you know how I am about dyes. I'm an all natural kind of girl."

"Sure thing, Wild Flower," I chuckled, turning back to the selection and flipping the page. "Maybe we should just stick with orange daylillies to compliment the white ones. Three different kinds of flowers will look pretty busy, especially with a surplus of greenery. I don't want to have to deal with clashing textures, too."

"Oh, you wanted to blend them all together? I thought we were doing this in seperate bunches. But, you know. However you want to do it."

"Come again? I think you might've been onto something there."

"That _would_ be a pretty busy mix, so I assumed you wanted to put the white lillies with a nice little blue flower, and the orange ones with a lot of greenery. Because, you know, we're kind of doing this as your colors being white and blue, and Torchwood's being green and orange. We could mix them all, but it'd be a lot harder."

"Wild Flower, that's actually brilliant."

"Don't _ever _underestimate me," she laughed. I could practically feel her smirking through the wall.

"I do have a suggestion, girls," Rarity chimed, returning to her work desk for more fabric. "If you could layer the flowers along the aisle, say, one row of flowers on top, followed by a row of another flower and so on, you could use all of your colors without it looking too cramped. And the clusters of grouped colors as Wild Flower suggested could also be used as compliments elsewhere.

"Ooh, I see where you're going with this," Wild Flower chirped.

"That sounds beautiful," I agreed.

And so a good part of the wedding organization fell into place in such a manner as that. I adored Rarity's bridesmaid gowns. They were white with a dark blue ribbon tied to a bow around the waist, one around the neckline and a second lighter blue ribbon just above the first. Rarity tweaked each slightly to go with everypony's personality; a couple of gems dotting the hemline of hers; a shower of apples stitched into Applejack's; stars for Twilight, an assortment of flowers and butterflies for Fluttershy; candies for Pinkie, and a faint rainbow imprint at the bottom of Rainbow's skirt, along with a multi-colored hem to match her mane. A lot was left up in the air for later discussion with Torchwood, but we made good progress. I'd have plenty of ideas to bring back to him.

We'd been there for hours, and things were finally drawing to a close. Rarity had perfected the dresses, even Wild Flower's, which was now a pale, silky blue-green color with the dark blue ribbons as accents, fashioned into a similar style as the bridesmaids. Instead of embroidered flowers in her hemline, though, a fine, white, wispy ribbon captured a thread of real blooms- mostly baby's breath and a couple of small white avens, as requested. She'd also declared that she was going to make the flower wreath for her mane closer to the wedding day so they wouldn't wilt. Rarity moved all the dresses to a reserved room until then.

I was helping to clean up with the rest of the girls when the doors to the boutique suddenly flewv open. Three young dragons stampeded through the door, Blaze and Spike panting heavily. Nova, who looked like he'd flown most of the way, wasn't breaking a sweat.

"Ac- Acryl-" Spike choked.

"Whoa! Are you boys okay?" Twilight stifled a laugh. Still out of breath, Blaze held up a scroll in response. Twilight levitated it, reading the entry line.

"_Dear Torchwood and Acrylic_," she began. Puzzled, she put the scroll down. "It's from Princess Celestia... for you." The letter was given over, and I resumed where she left off.

"_Dear Torchwood and Acrylic, _

"_Princess Luna and I would personally like to extend our congratulations on your engagement." _I temporarily put it down, disbelief in my eyes."The Princesses? Our wedding?" Intrigued, I eagerly turned back to it. All eyes were fixated on the letter as I read. "_As a sign of our gratitude for returning thestrals to society, and for saving Equestria, we cordially invite you to host your wedding ceremony at... _Canterlot Castle?!"

"We're going to the palace!" Blaze cheered, finally regaining his breath.

"Why, this is almost the equivelent of a royal wedding!" Rarity stuttered. She looked like she was about to faint as she had upon first recieving the assignment to design a royal wedding dress.

"_... and_ _I would personally like to oversee the ceremony._" I read on.

"Princess Celestia is going to marry you? What an honor!" Twilight gasped.

"_I'm sure that Twilight will be more than willing to arrange the details and coordinate with our staff here in Canterlot. We hope that you will be able to accept our offer, and look forward to seeing you in Canterlot for this momentous occation. _

"_Your Princess and friend,_

"_Princess Celestia._"

"THIS. IS SO. EXCITING!" Pinkie screamed, dancing on the spot.

"Wow! What a weddin' this is gonna be!" Applejack breathed. "I'll have to get the whole Apple family together to bake enough food for those high-class ponies in Canterlot!"

"Congratulations," Fluttershy whispered.

"Wait just a minute-"

"I bet even the Wonderbolts will be there to see me do the sonic rainboom!" Rainbow Dash suggested. The others vigorously nodded.

"Can you imagine how much publicity your boutique would get when we show off your dresses in front of all of Canterlot?"

"Oh, my!" Rarity swooned at the notion.

"My sister. Is getting married. In a castle! This is officially a fairy tale wedding!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Everypony freeze!" The whole room fell silent. "I don't think we're going to the castle, you guys."

"WHAT?!" Pinkie screeched, nose pressed to mine. I gently pushed her away.

"What? Why not?" Twilight interjected, puzzled and worried.

"I don't know that I want our wedding to be publicized like that. Torchwood keeps saying how nice a quiet countryside ceremony will be. And to be honest, I agree. I don't want a lot of big wig ponies sticking their noses into our affairs. This is our special day, not theirs. I just... you know... want to keep it private."

"Acrylic, darling, consider what you're giving up!" Rarity implored. "This is your chance to be recognized! To be married in the _Palace_ for all of Equestria to see!"

"Exactly! I don't want them all to see."

"How could you not want them to see? You're an artist, aren't you? You make things for ponies to look at!"

"My weddding isn't a painting, Rainbow. It's the biggest day of my life! I just don't want the whole world watching when I make that huge step. I want my closest friends with me, but no more."

"I understand that," Fluttershy nodded. "I don't like lots of ponies watching me, either."

"Well, I suppose it's understandable..." Applejack rubbed her neck.

"But are you absolutely sure you want to give that up? It's not often that the Princesses personally _ask_ to oversee a wedding!" Twilight exclaimed.

"You're right, Twilight. And I'll talk it over with Torchwood, but don't get your hopes up, okay? I want our wedding to be held where _we_ decide, not where somepony else chooses. It's _our _wedding, after all."

"Okay, but you better make up your mind soon! I don't like to keep the Princess waiting," Twilight consented. I began to head out the door, a lot of new questions nagging at my mind. Nova rejoined Wild Flower, and Spike with Twilight to help finish cleaning up, but Blaze followed me. Mom stepped out of the crowd as well. She caught up to me on the cobblestone road.

"You did the right thing," she assured, falling into step alongside us. "You should choose how your wedding is going to be managed. I don't care if she is royalty. Princess Celestia can only make suggestions, she can't organize your big day for you."

"I know I made the right choice, but I can't help but feel like I'm letting somepony down. Twilight's right- how often do the Princesses personally request to conduct a wedding ceremony? And Rarity really wanted us to host it there."

"But it isn't their wedding," she reminded. "If you and Torchwood are happy with a wedding right here in little old Ponyville, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It is a decision for you two to make and yours alone."

"You're right," I sighed. "Thanks, Mom."

"You're my daughter, Acrylic. I just want you to be happy." We paused long enough for a mother-daughter hug. Art Life was just up the road.

"Well, time to see if our wedding plans changed," I noted, making off for the familiar shop. "See you at dinner!"

"Canterlot Palace?" Torchwood repeated after me. He started pacing as soon as I brought out Celestia's letter. I now offered it to him to confirm the message.

"That's what it says."

"Well... I suppose it's a great honor..."

"But inadvertently insulting?" I finished.

"Exactly! I know the Princesses and I don't see eye to eye after all that's happened, but this is _our_ wedding day. I don't want _them_ planning it for us."

"Neither do I, Torch. And it's only a suggestion. Nothing's been written in stone. We can always decline."

"But how do we decline something like this without sounding arrogant?" he sighed.

"I'm not entirely sure it's possible..." I admitted, "but it's worth a shot."

"Where do we start?" he groaned, pacing again.

"Blaze? Take a note, please," I called into the back. He was there in an instant, eager to begin his new assistant duties with quill and paper in claw. I noticed that it was a sheet from one of the many sketchpads in the room instead of a scroll, but he looked so proud I decided not to point out this mistake. He was still getting the hang of this whole secretary business.

"Her Highness, Princess Celestia," Torchwood began.

"Is that too formal? Twilight always begins her letters with 'Dear Princess Celestia.'" Blaze looked up, unsure what to write.

"Her Dear Highness, Princess Celestia?" he corrected. I looked to the floor with a nod to conceal the ensuing giggle. The scratching of pen to paper told us that Blaze was keeping up. "We are honored by your invitation, and greatly appreciate your thinking of us."

"But, I'm afraid we cannot accept such a priveledge" I went on.

"That makes it sound like we're disappointed in not being able to attend," Torchwood argued. "I'm tired of lies. Just write, 'I'm afraid we cannot accept," he told our scribe. Blaze made a few edits to the message, and nodded when he was ready for us to go on. "We're afraid this event has evolved from a personal celebration to a public spectacle. We wish to keep it a private event. So thank you, but respectfully, no."

"Do you think we should invite them?"

"Invite the princesses?"

"They showed enough interest to try and invite themselves," I pointed out.

"Alright. Your highnesses, of course, are still invited to attend," Torchwood went on.

"Your... loyal subjects?"

"We don't exactly have a spotless record in that respect," Torchwood mused. "Your respectful subjects?"

"Good," I approved.

"Your respectful subjects, Torchwood and Acrylic."

"Can I send it now?" Blaze asked.

"Yes, Blaze."

"I've never sent a letter to the Princess before," he grinned, excitement gleaming in his eyes. "I hope it gets through okay."

"It'll be fine, Blaze," I assured. With that, he whisked the scroll away in a burst of twinkling ruby red flame.

"Now what?" the baby dragon asked.

"Now we wait," sighed Torchwood.

"In the meantime, the girls had some suggestions for the wedding."

"And our parents are making plans for the engagement party I want to run by you."

And so we finalized our flower choices, picked out stationary, chose the perfect archway for the ceremony, decided to hold the wedding itelf in Ponyville Park where we had our first date, and attended to all the last minor details. I'd been with the girls looking over decoration choices, but Torchwood was such close friends with Mr. Cake that he got to preview the food spreads. By the time we were finished, we still hadn't gotten a reply, so Torchwood told me of the plans for the engagement party. Our parents were in charge of arranging most of that (though I heard they were consulting with the local party planner Pinkie Pie), so we didn't have much work to do. It was almost another hour before a reply finally got through.

"_Dear Torchwood and Acrylic_," Blaze read,

"_Sister and I will respect your decision to remain in Ponyville. It is perfectly understandable, and I hope you do not think we were trying to intrude on your special day. However, I must bring to your attention that as the first thestral wedding in centuries, some ponies expect this to be an event to involve royalty. In this respect, might it be alright if I still conducted the ceremony? We both thank you for the invitation; I am happy to announce that Luna and I will both be attending regardless._

"Signed_ Princess Celestia._"

"She's just not going to let up, is she?" Torchwood sighed.

"She does have a point, though," I glumly pointed out. "Ponies are making expectations of our wedding. Those rumors we heard at the Hayburger are only going to spread as the big day gets closer."

"You're right," he realized.

"And ever since the... _incident_... the princesses feel like they owe me- us- a debt. I already told you that they gave me an open house invitation to the castle anytime. They must think that this is another one of those little things they can do to ease their guilt."

"You think this is some kind of peace offering?" I nodded.

"So in that case, how are we supposed to respond? Give into what they want or do what _we _want?" I asked, looking defeated. There was a long pause.

"Well... how bad could it be?"

"Come again?"

"What's the worst that could happen if we let Celestia conduct the ceremony?" I opened my mouth in protest, but no words came out. I shut it again as I pondered this question.

"Well..."

"And, it would be rather interesting to be able to brag that we were married by royalty," he weakly chuckled. I let a half-hearted smile show. That _would_ be an interesting story to say the least.

"I guess... but who's going to break the news to the mayor?"

"I will, if you like. But that pony practically worships the princesses- I'm sure she'll have no problem stepping down for Celestia to take over."

"If she's alright with it... then I guess I am too." Torchwood was right. After all, we were just going to have her conduct the ceremony, nothing more.

"Good. I'll have a word with the Mayor Mare."

"Shouldn't we write back to the Princess first? They'd probably like to get an answer back right away."

"Just tell them it'll be fine," he told me, pecking my forehead on his way out.

"Me?" He'd been so specific with the last letter that I almost couldn't believe he was asking me to do this one myself.

"If you don't mind," he added, stopping in the doorway.

"No, that's alright," I replied, still slightly baffled. He smiled.

"Everything will turn out alright." With that, he headed back out into town. I turned back to Blaze.

"You ready?"

"Hold on; I need to get another sheet of paper!" he dashed off into the studio for one. I smiled after him.


	10. Chapter 10: Rehearsal

**Chapter 10**

**Rehearsal**

**A/N: I just wanted to let you all know that at the special request of Mlplover12345, I'm now posting pictures of characters and scenes from **_**The Seventh Element**_** and S**_**ecrets of the Everfree**_** on my pinterest. (On pinterest because I don't have deviantart :/ ) There's a full link on (the VERY bottom of) my profile, or copy and paste this and insert the.- pinterest com/adoptpetz/my-little-pony-the-seventh-element-fanart/**

The Princess was delighted that we accepted her offer, and promised to be in Ponyville three days prior to the wedding for the rehearsal. The two months since we first received word from them flew by. Everypony's attire had been completed, Wild Flower promised that the newly grown flowers looked gorgeous, and Applejack had stocked up a surplus of apples that was more than adequate to cover the wedding's catering needs.

I had been excited for the wedding up until now. It wasn't dread per say, but nervousness was putting me on edge. Perhaps that was why I looked up at the royal chariot with an emotion close to loathing on the day their highnesses had appointed for their arrival. I was wondering if I could slip back inside my house and pretend I didn't notice their approach when the horns blew. The royal guardsponies were making sure nopony could ignore this grand entrance. I let out an audible sigh. With Torchwood out with Mr. Cake and Blaze and Spike out with visiting Nova, I was left to shamble down the road myself.

Fortunately, I wasn't alone. As usual, Twilight was the first to arrive to greet her mentor, and beat me there.

"Princess Celestia!" she cried, practically leaping at the Princess. Celestia accepted her into a warm embrace.

"Princess Twilight, it is so good to see you again!"

"Princess Luna!"

"Greetings, Princess Twilight," the moon princess thrummed. "It is good to be with you and your friends for this momentous occasion."

"Where _is_ the bride-to-be?" Celestia questioned. I picked up my pace, the resulting hoofbeats attracting their attention.

"Here, your highness," I bowed.

"There is no need for such formality," Celestia chuckled. "It is _your _special day that brought us here today, after all." I righted myself at this, looking slightly baffled. I didn't think our wedding entitled me to special privileges. In fact, it shouldn't have. Were they still trying to make up for their actions concerning the thestrals?

A crowd of townsponies had formed to greet the Princesses. Torchwood soon pushed his way to the front of the swarm with the three young dragons.

"Your majesty," he bowed in greeting. "We are so glad you could make it!"

"It is good to be here, Torchwood. Sister and I greatly appreciate being invited to your wedding," Luna smiled.

"I must say, young Blaze, you have become quite a talented secretary," Celestia complimented, turning to my young friend.

"Me?" he blushed.

"And you have done an excellent job of teaching him, Spike," she went on.

"Aw, thanks, Princess!"

"Now, who is this?" Luna moved a few paces forward to stand beside her sister.

"I'm Nova," the blue dragon introduced.

"He's my sister's dragon friend," I explained.

"I would very much like to make her acquaintance," Luna commented.

"You will soon enough," I promised. "She's my mare of honor."

"Splendid!"

"Now, where are all your other friends?"

"Right here, your Highnesses!" AJ called, leading the rest of our troop through the gathered swarm.

"And your sister?"

"Back at her house, still preparing the flowers," I rolled my eyes. "She refuses to even pick them until the day before, insisting that they'll wilt overnight."

"She must be very dedicated to her plants."

"That's an understatement."

"Well, come on, everypony. We have a wedding to rehearse." Celestia and Luna took the lead, accompanied by Twilight. I joined up with Torchwood, but we soon scrambled to the front to direct them to the site chosen for the ceremony.

We ended up in Ponyville Park, where Torchwood had taken me out on our first date. The pews had already been arranged, thanks to Big Mac, and the archway and stage had been erected. They still lacked Wild Flower's trademark blooms, of course. Tall poles lined the outer edge of the pews, each topped with a bowl of kindling we would ignite with our fire before the ceremony. Rarity had taken in upon herself to line the flower boxes and pews with magnificent shimmering, silky ribbon. Some had been left over for the archway, but they would be added later, so long as there was still room after the flowers were installed. Two 'changing rooms' had been set up a fair distance from the stage in rather large tents. I had objected to setting up so early until the pegasi promised to reschedule the rainy weather for after the wedding.

"Will your sister not be along for rehearsal?" Luna questioned. I couldn't help but note her persistence on the subject.

"I thought she was coming. Did she say anything to you, Nova?"

"She was still coming, the last I heard," the dragon offered.

"Graphite Sketch and Cedar promised to be here, too," Torchwood added, brow furrowed in worry.

"Wild Flower and Cedar will probably arrive together."

"We didn't give anypony a set time. Maybe they're still on their way?"

"The sun has not even reached its peak. There is still time," Celestia commented.

"I'm sorry to make you wait, Princess," Twilight sighed with a slight grumble. "I thought we'd be a bit more organized than this."

"It is quite alright, Princess Twilight. I hope you do not mind, Acrylic and Torchwood," Celestia went on, "but we have invited guests of our own. They have not yet arrived, either."

"Oh?" I stiffened. Torchwood was a little on edge at this, but didn't let the Princesses know.

"Who?" he politely inquired.

"We're so sorry for being late," a rushed voice puffed. I almost jumped. That voice was all too familiar. We all turned to face Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, or Cadence, as she liked to be called, along with her husband Shining Armor.

"Princess!" Our respectful bows to the High Princesses had been denied the first time, so nopony even tried now. The newcomers received nods of acknowledgement and warm smiles from all around instead.

"Cadence! Shining Armor!" Twilight bounded up to greet her brother and sister-and-law.

"Twily!" Shining Armor grinned, hugging his sister.

"Your Highness," I nodded, stepping forward with Torch to greet our guests.

"Please, call me Cadence," she warmly corrected.

"Because Princess Cadence and Shining Armor were also recently married, I thought that perhaps they could provide you with advice, if you so wish," Celestia spoke up.

"I would be happy to!" Cadence exclaimed.

"Believe me, it's not as hard as it looks," Shining Armor chuckled to Torchwood. The way he grinned back told me that they would hit it off well.

"It looks like we'll have plenty of time before the last of our company arrives," Celestia noted. "Shall we meet back here at three o' clock? That should give them plenty of time."

"As you wish, Princess." Everypony dispersed, most following the Princesses. Shining Armor headed out with Torch, the girls followed either Celestia or Luna, and even the dragons took it upon themselves to look for our missing members. Finally, Cadence and I were the only two left. She smiled back at me, and I found my cheeks growing hot with embarrassment in the ensuing awkward silence. The last time I saw Cadence was on her wedding day, when Chrysalis tried to take over and I exposed the thestral race. That had been a mess.

"I don't think I got the chance to congratulate you personally," she finally spoke up.

"Oh! Thank you, your Highness," I stuttered, finally blushing. She noticed this, and softly giggled.

"You know, you don't have to be so formal with me," she said, turning and walking down the road. I dashed to catch up. "In fact, I'm honored to be able to attend."

"You are?" I exclaimed. That stopped her in her tracks.

"Of course! Is that so surprising?"

"Well... the last time I was at your wedding, I kind of... crashed it..."

"Don't be silly! Chrysalis did that all on her own. But you were so brave, to stand up to her the way you did. I was actually quite disappointed when you couldn't make the real wedding."

"Even though I'm a thestral?"

"What difference does it make what kind of pony you are?"

"Well... none anymore, I guess..."

"Look, I heard what happened before, with the whole transformation fiasco. For what it's worth, I vouched for you from the beginning. You couldn't help what kind of pony breed you were, but you could choose what kind of pony you are inside. I only saw goodness in you. When Princess Celestia passed her sentence, I know she wasn't passing her sentence on you. All she could see were the evil thestrals she fought in the past, but not you. You did well- even my husband thinks so, and he's the captain of the royal guard!"

"Thank you, Princess," I sniffled.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry!"

"No, no, it's good," I chuckled through watery eyes. "It's happy crying." I wasn't sure if I was allowed to hug royalty, but it didn't matter when she wrapped a hoof around me first. I laughed off the tears, taking care not to let any fall onto her coat. It was embarrassing enough to have an emotional breakdown in front of the Princess.

"Wait, where are we going?" I wondered, realizing that we'd stopped in the middle of the road.

"I hoped you knew," Cadence laughed.

"You took the lead!" I protested with a giggle.

"Well, why don't you take me back to your house? I'd love to see more of your paintings. If that's alright with you, of course. I don't want to impose."

"I'd be happy to! This way."

* * *

After that, Cadence and I became fast friends. Torchwood and Shining Armor got along splendidly as well. This was much to the Princesses' delight, of course.

Graphite arrived at Ponyville Inn around noon, but we eventually had to send Rainbow out after Wild Flower. She was the fastest of us all, and I was needed to stay back and clear up last minute details, or I'd have gone out with her. My frazzled sister was finally dragged back, still complaining about how the flowers needed to be misted with water again in half an hour. Cedar, as I had guessed, came with her, still trying to assure her that the blooms would be fine. Otherwise, rehearsal went smoothly. Even I had to admit that it did help to alleviate a few of the knots in my stomach.

Graphite Sketch and Torchwood got to catch up after rehearsal, and Torch dragged Cedar along to introduce everypony. Shining Armor wasn't about to miss out, and tagged along. As soon as we were finished, Wild Flower zoomed back off to Baltimare, grumbling about how the flowers would surely be wilted by the time she got back. Luna, especially, seemed rather disappointed at her sudden disappearance. I knew there would be no holding my sister back once she had her mind set on something. I did, however, assure the Princess that if she was willing to put up with my sister and possibly be set to work in the greenhouse, she was welcome to follow her. Cadence, on the other hoof, wanted in on helping to plan the bachelorette party, and got together with the rest of the girls.

Since I had been booted out of the party planning group, I decided to accompany Luna to my sister's house. Perhaps the tension could be lessened that way. Luna was delighted that I would be going with her, and began to prepare her royal chariot. I declined, saying that I'd rather fly myself. At this, she too abandoned the escort and waited for me to take the lead. I was quite apprehensive about taking the Princess to my sister's house, mostly because I hadn't yet been myself. With all the wedding planning, I'd only gotten as far as to keep in touch through letters via dragon mail. How embarrassing it would look when I had to ask for the address of my own sister! Fortunately, I didn't have to.

I knew she would prefer to live on the outskirts of the city, and the greenhouse stuck out like a sore hoof amongst the other empty fields. The vivid flora surrounding the place was breathtaking. I knew my sister had a way with flowers, but in the Everfree, she'd never been able to come close to accomplishing anything like this.

Flying overhead, I noted the L shape of a simple house with two entrances. Like me, she'd build a shop directly into the rest of her home in the last room of the longer part of the L. Glass doors led directly into the flower shop, while a sturdy wooden one sealed the other entrance. I assumed that was her front door. The whole property was encased in a homely wood fence, a modest gate starting the cobblestone path to the front door but an elegant archway announcing the way to the flower shop. A sign that read 'Wild Gardens' was posted at the top. Of course, the flowers around the yard were the crown jewel of the place. Flower trellises were set up along the length of the house, where creeping flowers seemed to wind their way up the walls. The smaller flowers were closest to the paths with the larger, fuller plants flaring out further away. There was every color imaginable displayed here, but still maintaining a beautiful balance.

Luna and I trotted up to the glass doors to her shop, as we saw her already working inside. I knocked on the glass to let her know we were here. She looked up from the watering can, and froze. I started pushing the door open, but she zoomed up and held it open for us. Luna followed me inside.

"Hey, Wild Flower. I'd like you to meet-"

"Acrylic, can I talk to you for a second?" I didn't get the chance to say anything when she caught me in a headlock and dragged me off.

"What was that for?" I gasped when she finally released me. I'd been deposited in one of the back rooms. It looked like the bedroom.

"WHAT DID YOU BRING HER HERE FOR?!" she quietly seethed.

"What's wrong?"

"Princess Luna. Is in. MY _SHOP_!"

"So?"

"_Royalty_ is in my shop!"

"Yes, we've established that, thanks."

"What do I say? What do I do? You couldn't even give me a head's up?"

"Wild Flower, it's just Luna, not a health inspector."

"Don't call her by her_ first name_! You'll get us into so much trouble!"

"But... she likes being called Luna," I protested. Wild Flower nervously whined, dancing on the spot.

"You know how shy I am," she whimpered.

"You? Shy?" I almost laughed. "You welcomed yourself to _my_ friends just fine."

"Yeah, because you were there and I was really giddy and excited. Plus, they were really, _really _nice. But I'm not usually like that!"

"Would you calm down? Luna has been looking forward to meeting you since the wedding rehearsal, but didn't get a chance because you ran off so fast. She personally requested that we come."

"No, no, no," Wild Flower groaned.

"Stop stressing and get back out there. I'll introduce you." I practically had to drag my sister out by her tail, but when we came upon the doors, forced her to her hooves for her dignity's sake. "Luna, I'd like you to meet my sister, Wild Flower. Wild Flower, Luna."

"Charmed," Luna greeted. My sister was petrified. I nudged her.

"Say 'hi,' Wild Flower."

"Hi," she squeaked.

"You have no reason to fear me, Wild Flower," Luna warmly beamed. "I am no longer Nightmare Moon."

"You were _NIGHTMARE MOON_?!" Wild Flower screeched. I face-hoofed.

"Yes..." Luna softly and uneasily admitted. "But no more. The Elements of Harmony... cleansed me, as it were."

"I see..." Wild Flower mumbled, still wide-eyed.

"Wild Flower? Why don't you show us around? I hope the wedding flowers didn't get too wilted in the whole _hour _you were gone," I teasingly prompted.

"Oh! Right! Sure! They're in the back." We were promptly whisked through yet another back door I hadn't noticed and into a garden. We strode across a stone walkway to get to a private greenhouse, separate from the rest of the garden. The flowers I requested for the wedding seemed to be all that was growing here! I was overwhelmed by the surplus of orange, blue and white.

"Oh, Wild Flower, they're perfect!" I exclaimed.

"They are beautiful," Luna crooned, examining one of the blooms in more detail.

"Thank you, your Highness."

"Luna," she reminded.

"Luna," Wild Flower hastily corrected. "Thank you, Luna. Now, Acrylic? I wanted to run some baby's breath by you. I know you didn't request it, but I think it would look really good with some of the arrangements."

"I, too, have a request to make," Luna interjected.

"Yes?" Wild Flower and I exchanged glances.

"Sister and I would like to make an announcement at the reception."

"What kind of announcement?"

"I trust that rumors of a permanent solution to thestrals' placement have reached Ponyville?"

"Yes," I admitted, recalling the bit of information relayed to me during one of my conversations with Rarity.

"They are not rumors, but fact."

"How wonderful!" Wild Flower excitedly squealed, forgetting that she was standing before the moon Princess.

"We would like to announce our plans at your wedding," she finally concluded.

"How amazing would that be?!" Wild Flower burst. "Everypony would remember your wedding!"

"But they might not remember that it was a _wedding_," I pointed out.

"What in Equestria is that supposed to mean? That's the whole point!"

"I'm just worried that this event is changing from a wedding celebration to a promotional advertisement. First, the Princesses are coming... not that I'm not flattered you could make it. Really, Luna, it's an honor, but just the fact that you're attending is attracting attention."

"I'm afraid I'm not following you," Luna fretted.

"To put it bluntly, Princess Luna, I want this to be remembered as our wedding, not the Princesses' big announcement."

"I see," Luna coolly stated. As the moon princess, she always spoke in a formal, almost cold tone of voice. Perhaps it was just my imagination, but now her words seemed piercing, almost threatening. As always, her expression remained neutral, providing no other hint as to what she was thinking.

"I do hope you understand," I timidly added.

"Of course. It is your decision to make," she nodded. "Although, I hardly believe it is a decision to be made on your own. I do urge you to speak with Torchwood about the matter."

"I-I will, Princess."

"Luna," she corrected yet again with a smile. I shook my head and chided myself.

"Of course, Luna."

* * *

"Are you ready to go?" Princess Cadence called, knocking on the door.

"Just a minute," I replied. I finished organizing the last of the supplies on the shelf, and opened the door. With a smile, Cadence turned to walk me to the bachelorette party. I shot a tired, crooked grin back.

"Are you alright?" she asked as we headed out.

"Yeah," I yawned, shaking myself back to alertness. "It's just all this stress from the wedding. I can't believe it's tomorrow! It all happened so fast!"

"I felt the same way with our wedding," Cadence sighed, recalling the fond memory. Then her brow furrowed. "Of course, until Chrysalis showed up."

"Right," I solemnly agreed. Then, Cadence began to laugh.

"Though I'm sure your wedding will go far more smoothly than mine did. Now, cheer up! Tonight, you get to forget about the wedding, and just relax!"

"You make it sound easy," I chuckled.

"It'll all fall into place, I promise," she assured.

"Not everything. I still haven't gotten used to the idea of royalty attending, and Torch and I still haven't come to a final decision on Princess Luna's proposal..."

"Oh? What proposal?" I released a heavy-hearted sigh.

"She wants to make a big announcement at the reception about thestral relocation."

"How wonderful!" When I didn't burst into excited clamoring along with her, she added, "It is wonderful, isn't it?"

"Sure, by itself it's fantastic news. But I'm not so sure I want it announced at our wedding. I want it to be remembered as a _wedding_, and not an advertising event, you know?" Cadence's eyes grew a little wider, seeming to catch on instantly.

"I understand completely."

"Really?"

"Of course! You're right, it is a wedding, not a royal conference. You and your husband should be the focus, not some big announcement. I'm sure the Princesses will understand."

"I'm glad you think so, because when I told that to Luna, she didn't seem to want to let it go."

"Well, have you told Princess Celestia?"

"I don't think I'd have better luck with her, either. We were originally going to have Mayor Mare conduct the ceremony, but Celestia pushed for that, too. Don't get me wrong; I'm honored they thought of us, but I just feel like they're planning it for us."

"They may be royalty, but they can't take over your wedding for you," Cadence pointed out. "Why don't we go clear things up with them tomorrow? I'll even go with you."

"Would you, really?"

"Of course! What are friends for?"

"Thank you," I sighed in relief.

"It's no problem at all," she smiled. "Now do you think you can enjoy yourself at the party?"

"It's possible," I jokingly winked. It was just in time, for we had already arrived at Sugar Cube Corner, which had been rented out for the event. Cadence held the door open for me, and we both entered the bustling building.


	11. Chapter 11: A Thestral Wedding

**Chapter 11**

**A Thestral Wedding**

**A/N: Ugh, so sorry guys. It only took me 11 chapters to get to the actual wedding. I really need an editor.**

After a long night of partying and forgetting all my cares, morning came with a landslide of painful realization. I was getting married. Today.

My hooves felt heavy, and it was a chore just to drag myself to the bathroom to wash up. Married. The idea itself was a happy, even soothing notion. But the thought of actually going through with the ceremony wracked me to the bone. I loved Torchwood more than anypony. I knew deep down that we were made for each other, and I'd do anything for him- even something as terrifying as this. That didn't mean I had to like it, though.

Nerves were getting the better of me, and I was trembling all the way to the front door. I was all alone in the house- my parents were too excited to get a wink of sleep, and left early. Blaze had stayed the night at Torchwood's with Spike, Nova and Cedar so they could all be ready. Twilight offered to host a sleepover at the library, where we had moved to complete the party when Sugar Cube Corner closed up, but I preferred to get a good night's rest in my own bed. Even so, I hadn't gotten more than a couple of hours, and it showed on my dishievaled appearance. At least the wedding wasn't until this evening- Torchwood and I both wanted to close the ceremony with a moonlit kiss. Hmm... on that note, perhaps it couldn't hurt to catch a few extra winks.

"Hellooooo?" The door squeaked open, and the irratic bouncing of hooves told me that Pinkie was in the lobby. I released a heavy sigh, which only attracted her attention. So much for that idea. Pinkie's reflection appeared in the mirror, and sure enough, her head poked through the doorway. Our eyes locked, and I hadn't even opened my mouth to say something when she gave me a mamoth hug and squealed. "Oh! I'm just so so super duper excited for you! I can't believe you're actually getting married!" Her tight grip around my neck loosened slightly, and I managed to twist around enough to see her eyes water. "You're all grown up now," she sniffled.

"Pinkie, I've _been _grown up," I irritably reminded, batting her away. I didn't like to deal with Pinkie's antics until after noon.

"Oh, I know, silly," she giggled. "But this is HUGE! Ponies aren't the same after they get married! You'll start acting a lot like him, and he'll act a lot like you to the point where it's scary! I hope we'll still be able to tell you apart!"

"Of course you'll be able to tell us apart. But we _are _going to be living together," I pointed out. "It's only natural for us to start picking up one anothers' habits."

"We'll see."

"Are you guys ready?" Twilight.

"Ready for what?"

"The spa date we arranged, darling!"

"I guess she's so excited about the wedding she forgot."

"It's six in the morning! The spa isn't going to be open."

"It will be for us! I had to pull a few strings, but the place is all ours this morning!"

"Not just yet."

"Princess Cadence?"

"I think there's something Acrylic wants to get off her chest before any of that."

"There is?"

"There is?" I echoed in wonder. I wracked my foggy brain for answers. My pupils shrunk to pinpricks of fear, and my stomach knotted again. I'd almost forgotten about Luna.

* * *

"There they are. Go on, now. We're right behind you." All my friends had walked me to Ponyville Park, where the Princesses were already consulting with their skeleton crew of escorts about security. This wasn't something for me to take on alone- Torchwood had met up with us just for this part of the morning. We had time for little else but a nuzzle in greeting before we happened upon the royal sisters. I took a shaky breath to steady myself. Torchwood laid his head over mine.

"Don't worry," he comfortingly crooned. "They'll understand."

"I know. It's just the idea of telling the Princesses what they can and can't do that's getting to me."

"Just think. After this, you can relax all day until the ceremony. Then, you're all mine."

"I like the sound of that." He gave me one last peck before the royal sisters noticed us. We were accompanied by our entire train, though they stayed their distance to let us handle it.

"Ah! My dear bride and groom! What brings you here so early? I understood that the wedding is not to be conducted until later in the evening."

"That's right, your Highness. We're here about Luna's proposal."

"I see," the moon princess stepped forward. "So you have both considered my suggestion. And? What have you decided?" Torchwood and I exchanged final glances.

"Respectfully, Princess Luna, no."

"We want it to stay a wedding," I spoke up. Though she didn't seem at all offended, I felt the need to explain myself.

"We want it to be _our _day, not a day for all thestrals."

"Normally, I don't mind sharing, but this... this is something we want to keep to ourselves."

"I guess what we're trying to say is, let the announcement be a celebration in itself. So thank you, but no."

"It's alright, you needn't explain yourselves. I completely understand."

"You do?" There was no hint of the coolness from before, or even disappointment in Luna's voice. Mine, on the other hoof, reeked of surprise.

"Of course I do. Naturally, you want this to remain a private event. I did not think you would be the type who would accept such formalities, but sister and I agreed we must at least give you the choice."

"I- I just... thank you, your Highness."

"Is this so surprising?" Luna almost chuckled.

"I guess... I don't know. Maybe this sounds foolish, but when you made a request from us..."

"I think what Acrylic's trying to say," Torchwood stepped in to help me out. "When such an honor was extended to us- from the royal sisters, no less- there was a good deal of pressure. I suppose that for a while, we forgot the choice was ours."

"In no way did we mean to press anything on you this special occasion," Celestia interjected. "I'm sorry. I did not mean to make you uncomfortable in any way. As you have said, this is your celebration. We may be royalty, but we've come to your wedding as your friends." I smiled in relief at the way things were unrolling. "And so, with your consent, I would like to return the honor of conducting the ceremony to Mayor Mare."

"ME?!" the mayor shrieked from the nearest tent where she was organizing last minute preparations.

"Oh, your Highness, please don't feel compelled to-"

"I do feel compelled to make sure your wedding goes exactly as you originally wanted. I would not feel comfortable knowing I may have influenced your decision. Now I shall let you decide for yourselves how you want your wedding to be organized." I looked to Torchwood.

"Do you still want our fairytale wedding?"

"As long as you're up there with me at the altar, my life is already a fairytale." He lovingly rubbed noses with me. My heart fluttered.

"Then I hope it is not too much to ask, Mayor Mare, that you take on this responsibility at such late notice?"

"It would be my honor, your Highness!"

"Excellent! Now, my little ponies, we have a wedding to put on!" Our large circle of friends cheered as their majesties looked on, beaming ear-to-ear. I was about ready to melt in my own relief.

"Well, come on! We still have exclusive spa time."

"And we have plans of our own with Torch."

"See you at the altar?"

"I'll be there." He lightly kissed my lips as we parted. I felt like I was walking on air.

* * *

I was pacing in the 'dressing room' set up in one of the tents. Rarity had just left to find her seat after fixing my hair- the mangy, unmanageable locks had been subdued by her fashion taste, forced into luscious curls and a beautiful braid. Not one wrinkle was visible on the dress, and even the satin slippers to go with it didn't seem to have a speck of dirt on them. Of course, if I kept up this pacing, they wouldn't stay that way for long.

"Don't worry," Cadence tried to soothe. "I was in your horseshoes too, not all that long ago. It'll all be fine."

"I know," I repeated for the hundredth time. "But it's finally happening. I'm about to be married! I'll be the happiest pony in the world when it's over with, but I have to get through the ceremony first."

"Forget about all the other ponies," Cadence advised. "Just focus on him, and you'll be fine."

"Is it really that simple?"

"He's the only one that matters to you right now. Why bother yourself with the rest of them?"

"Thanks, Cadence. You've been such a big help to me through all this."

"Don't mention it. Now, I'd better go find my seat. You're on in five!" With a final 'good luck' wink, she left me.

I glanced at my reflection once more in the mirror. My friends had gone to great pains to make sure I'd look my best for this moment. A long treatment at the spa had been rather rejuvenating, but the steam from the hot tub had caused my mane to frizz up. That led to a painfully long styling appointment. I suppose it'd all been worth it in the end- my hair was finely braided and curled, with flowers woven into it at Wild Flower's request. Now just a hint of blue eyeliner coated my eyelids, making my sapphire blue eyes stand out. A light coating of makeup had been brushed over my other features, though if they really did anything to enhance my appearance, I couldn't tell. It sure did itch, though.

"Are you ready?" My father had appeared at the tent's opening, fitted in a smart tux to receive me.

"Is it time already?" I shakily smiled, slowly making my way up to him.

"It is," he hummed, wrapping one hoof around mine. I turned to set off for the aisle, but he held me back a moment. I was instantly pulled into one last embrace. "You're not my little girl anymore," he softly wept.

"Dad," I happily sniffled. "I'll always be your little girl." He pulled himself away so we could get going.

"I love you," he smiled. This was the first time I'd ever really seen him cry.

"I love you too." He looked me over, gently pulling the veil over my eyes.

"Shall we?"

"Yes."

It was getting late- the sky was purple, signifying that it was dusk. I was led up the hill, where I could see the edge of the red carpet. Once there, we momentarily stopped, giving the flower girls a head start and cuing Octavia to start the music. I felt all their eyes on me, and quietly gulped. Slight movement caught my eye to the left, which turned out to be Cadence waving at me. A reassuring wink reminded me of her advice. I closed my eyes, and with a shaky breath, focused my attention to the stage. She was right; once I locked eyes with Torchwood, I forgot all else. A smile escaped from my lips, and I held my head a little higher. Once Dad parted to find a seat beside Mother, I couldn't help that I picked up the pace for the last few steps.

My parents sat in the front row to the left, with Torchwood's to the right. The rest of our friends were scattered throughout the rest of the pews, though Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor all had specially reserved seating even further to the right. My bridesmaids lined the left side, and Torch's groomscolts backed him from the right. The flower girls filed off to the side, and I noted our ring bearer Blaze hovering between Torch and the Mayor. Torchwood tenderly lifted the veil, revealing my damp, happy eyes.

"Mares and Gentlecolts," the mayor began. "We are gathered here today to witness the union of Acrylic Storm and Torchwood. Against all odds, they found each other in a world where neither should have ever even existed. Yet their love grew and blossomed, and even brought thestral kind back to us. They are undeniably meant for one another, and though their hearts have already merged, tonight's ceremony authenticates this wonderous union. May we have the rings, please?" Blaze dutifully stepped forward, offering the rings on a cushion. Twilight and Rarity were the only two unicorns on stage, so they split the responsibility of delivering the rings. Again, they hung from silver chains. Mine, surrounded by Twilight's pink aura, was deposited around my neck, and Torchwood's, suspended by Rarity's blue light, dangled around his. "Torchwood, do you take Acrylic Storm as your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do."

"And do you, Acrylic Storm, take Torchwood to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do."

"Then it is my great honor to pronounce you mare and colt. You may now kiss the bride." Our eyes locked, our hooves intertwined, and Torchwood bent over to make his move. His lips touched mine, and our assembly finally burst into a clamoring of celebratory cheers and happy tears. Both of our parents were crying in the front row, but as always, Pinkie could be heard above them all. Amazed 'oohs and aahs' filled the park, and Torch and I both turned to the face of the full moon behind us. I smiled my thanks to Luna- it was still a little early, but we got our moonlit kiss after all.

Torch and I walked back down the aisle hoof-in-hoof, being showered with flower petals the whole way. I didn't think I'd ever stop smiling. Our train followed us out as we headed to the reception further out in the park, where we could use the park's picnic tables for the event. AJ's snack bar had already been laid out, and Vinyl Scratch could take over her DJ station. Torchwood escorted me and most of our train to the larger table, but we were missing one. Pinkie bounced to the middle of the picnic space, clipboard in one hoof and a whistle in her mouth. She blew as loudly as she could, attracting a sizable crowd.

"Alright, everypony. Are you ready for the best. Reception. EVER?!" I chuckled while the crowd sounded agreement, and I allowed myself to lie against my husband. His wing curled around mine, and we just sat quietly for a moment, soaking in reality. _Our _reality.

"You're finally mine," he contently sighed.

"All yours," I agreed, snuggling closer to his chest. Our moment was short lived, for we were soon bombarded with congratulations from our friends.

"Well, well, well, congratulations to you both. Oh, you two are just so _adorable_!" Discord had gone from vigorously shaking our hooves to pinching our cheeks and finally settled on hovering in the air.

"Discord! I'm so glad you came," I smiled. "You never responded to the invitation. I wasn't sure if you could make it."

"Well, I did have to reschedule some _marvelous_ chaos in order to attend." I snorted amusement, but Torch narrowed his eyes. He didn't yet completely trust Discord and his chaos. "You both take care, then."

"You won't stay?"

"I think not. You know, places to see, things to do, a bit of chaos to manage."

"Management and chaos? That's a contradiction in itself!"

"Well, you know me."

"Thanks for coming." I reached over the table to give him a proper hug.

"You'll take care of this lovely lady, won't you?"

"For as long as I live," Torch vowed.

"Then the best of luck to you!" He gave Torchwood a more formal hoofshake before taking off to who-knows-where.

"Hey, Vinyl! Time to hit the music!" Pinkie called out. I saw the unicorn's electric blue mane bob to tell us she received the message, and got to work picking the perfect tune at her station.

"Um, Ditzy? Could I have this dance?" I heard Time Turner ask the gray pegasus Ditzy Doo.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea," she blushed. "The last time I went dancing, I broke the ballroom. How about we get some snacks?"

"Snacks it is, then. Apple fritters?"

"I think I'm more in the mood for pears," she jeered with a smirk. Time Turner's face fell.

"Don't even think about it."

"Well, even if those two won't dance," Torch turned to me, "It seems as though everypony else is moving to the dance floor. Shall we?" Indeed, a huge crowd of our friends now swarmed the open space dedicated to said activity.

"Of course." I was led out to the field where a new song was just about to begin. Vinyl took an extra minute to choose a song, probably realizing that the bride and groom were coming out for their first dance. I expected some sort of high energy dub step, coming from Vinyl Scratch, but to my surprise, a slow love song was put on instead.

"Forever, by Treble Cleff."

"Huh?"

"That's the song," Torchwood explained.

"Oh. I've never heard of it." I paused for a moment to take in the gentle keys of the piano. "But I like it already."

"Shall we?"

"Anything for you, Torch." My new husband led us in a waltz in time to the song. Torch was obviously quite familiar with it, because he quietly hummed with the singer.

_**...**_

_You're the love of my life,_

_And we know no strife._

_I'll care for you all of my days._

_I just wanna meet your gaze._

_I'll always want you in my life._

_**...**_

_We'll never sever._

_For you I'll always endeavor._

_It doesn't matter where we are;_

_You're my north star._

_And we'll be together forever._

_**...**_

_I'm never gonna leave you,_

_It'll just be us two_

_Forever_

_**...**_

_You're sweeter than morning dew._

_I'd do anything to be with you._

_I'd travel across the land;_

_Over mountains so grand,_

_If you'll just love me too._

_**...**_

_We'll never sever._

_For you I'll always endeavor._

_It doesn't matter where we are;_

_You're my north star._

_And we'll be together forever._

_**...**_

_I'm never gonna leave you,_

_It'll just be us two_

_Forever_

_**...**_

_I can't offer much_

_In exchange for your touch,_

_But my love just might be enough._

_And when times get tough,_

_I'll be your crutch._

_**...**_

_So it'll just be us two_

_Forever_

_**...**_

"I love you, Torch."

"I love you, too."

**A/N: Okay, let's all pretend that was way more romantic. We all know that romance isn't my strongest genre. As for the song, I just whipped up a quick poem. Not the greatest love song ever, but I figured that Acrylic and Torchwood's song needed to be an original instead of some cliché or parody. **


	12. Chapter 12: Honeymoon

**Chapter 12**

**Honeymoon**

The reception lasted almost all night, which suited us just fine. The next train to Tall Tale Beach wasn't until morning. That was where Torchwood was taking me for our honeymoon. It was just south of Vanhoover, but he said that there wasn't a more romantic place in Equestria.

We were there at 5:00 A.M. for the train. The attendants took care of our minimal luggage, which was fine by me. I was almost falling asleep in Torch's arms as it was. Though thestrals were naturally nocturnal, I'd been on Ponyville time for so long that the late night had taken its toll. If Torch was exhausted as I was, he didn't show it. There were few other passengers on the train at this hour, so we got a whole car to ourselves. I remember that we spoke on the way there, but I'm not sure exactly what was said. I must've fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, I was stumbling bleary-eyed into our hotel, _The Unbridled_ Inn, which was supposed to be named after a famous ship. I slept late with Torchwood beside me.

Morning found us still in bed, sleeping the day away. It wasn't until almost noon that I rolled over in my sleep, accidently brushing noses with Torch and waking us both up. He gave a crooked smile that implied he wasn't quite awake yet. I foolishly mimicked it.

"Good morning, beautiful," he yawned.

"Hey, hon," I sighed.

"You're so cute when you sleep."

"I would say the same of you, except I've got so much sleep in my eyes that I can't tell." He chuckled and pecked my nose. I smiled. We were finally married. He was all mine, and I was his. It was a good feeling. Finally, he rolled out of bed.

"Up so soon?" I groaned.

"It _is _almost noon," he pointed out.

"Time doesn't count on our honeymoon."

"It does to the rest of the world, and that's what matters if we're going to make the 2:00 ferry."

"Ferry?"

"The oceans here are the prettiest in Equestria. I thought we could go sightseeing before dinner this evening, and maybe close off with a walk along the beach?"

"Sounds fine with me," I agreed, finally motivated enough to get out of bed. "Does the hotel offer lunch?"

"Hungry?" he laughed.

"No, but it won't take us long to get ready, and we won't have much to do in the meantime."

"I think they serve three meals a day, but if not, I know of an excellent Café on the boardwalk."

"You've been here before?"

"It wasn't too far from my home in Vanhoover. I used to visit quite a lot."

"I bet that means you already have our whole trip planned out."

"I do know the best places," he winked.

"I look forward to it." With one last kiss, I finally moved onto the bathroom to get ready.

* * *

The day had gone by perfectly. We went on the ferry as planned for the most beautiful, romantic boat ride of my life. Then we browsed the boardwalk, ate dinner at a fine seafood restaurant (for seaweed, of course) and finally ended our evening with a walk on the beach. That was where our date got interesting.

"This is nice," I sighed. The sun was going down, casting a beautiful orange and pink glow out onto the sand. We were all alone, far out on the beach. We'd glided past the hazardous rocks, giving us an exclusive stretch of coast all to ourselves. There wasn't a pony in sight.

"I wish every night could be like this," he agreed.

"No you wouldn't," I laughed. "Once in a while is nice, but you like the quiet country, not the bustling beach resort."

"Fair enough." I turned back for a moment to look back at our hoofprints in the sand. A wave of foaming sea water brushed over it, partially washing out the imprints. Torchwood stopped while I was distracted. We both took a seat on the sand, just watching the sun go down. I loved the smell of the sea water. The rhythmic lapping of water at our hooves was beginning to lull me to sleep. It was relaxing at this time of day.

"It's so beautiful," I said for what must've been the hundredth time that day. It wasn't that I couldn't think of anything more to say, it was just that I'd never before witnessed the majesty of the ocean. As a recluse in the Everfree Forest, I'd never been to the beach. Torch, realizing this, agreed the first time I'd mentioned it, but now gave compliments like, "It's not as pretty as you," or "The ocean makes your eyes stand out" just to switch things up a bit. I was expecting a similar comment, but Torch threw me off guard.

"You should have brought your supplies! You could've spent the whole day painting it."

"But that wouldn't be fair to you," I argued. "What would you do while I sat around painting all day? And besides, I'd much rather spend our honeymoon with _my husband_."

"I like the sound of that," he grinned. "Besides, we _should _make the most of our honeymoon. Now that we'll be living together, we'll probably get sick of each other," he joked.

"I'll never get sick of you," I assured with a smile. Torchwood moved in to close off our evening with one last kiss, but we were interrupted by a loud splash. There were no swimmers around, and I'd never heard a wave crash like that before.

"What was that?"

"There it is again!" Torchwood finally stood up, trying to get a good look around and pinpoint the source of the noise. Strangely enough, it seemed to be coming from somewhere behind us, but the ocean was ahead. There were only rocks where the noise appeared to be coming from. I resolved that the cliffs must be causing an echo, but Torchwood proved me wrong when he pointed out a small tide pool just a little ways down the beach.

We both started out at a trot, intrigued by the noise, but Torch finally broke into a canter in his curiosity.

"What is it?" I called as he reduced his pace once more. He hadn't quite yet reached the pool to be able to tell me, so he said nothing. Just before he reached the edge of the pool, a face poked out. He reared in surprise, and even I jumped, still two yards away.

"Sorry!" the quiet voice squeaked. "I didn't mean to scare you!" Only the mare's eyes were visible; she was barely poking her head out from the rocks. Either the pool was far deeper than it looked, or she was hiding. From what _was _visible, though, I gathered that she was a lime green mare with bright eyes of almost the same hue. All the green would have been overwhelming if it hadn't been for the bright blue spots all over her face. I don't mean freckles, I mean _spots_. Even stranger was that I couldn't make out her mane or ears. Granted, she was positioned at such an angle that if her ears were flipped down, they wouldn't be seen, but her mane must have been cropped very short- no longer than a buzz cut. Even so, she was quite beautiful.

"Uh... miss? Do you need help?" A long, dragged out silence had ensued up to this point, the both of us staring at the mysterious mare all the while. She had stared right back, not saying a word.

"No!" she answered all too quickly. She seemed to be waiting for us to leave.

"Are you sure?" Torch suspiciously squinted, looking her over once again.

"Yes."

"What are you doing in a tide pool?" I pressed, closing the extra distance. The face shied further away with each step I took. This did nothing for my curiosity.

"Looking... for someone," she squeaked, almost invisible once again.

"Who are you looking for in the tide pool?"

"Acrylic, perhaps we should go," Torch suggested, untrusting of the strange figure. I wasn't satisfied.

"My pet," she finally whispered, almost down to Fluttershy's level, but not quite.

"Oh? What kind of pet? Maybe we could help you find it."

"Really, it's not your problem. You should just go home; it's getting dark."

"That's all the more reason you should keep us around. We're thestrals- well suited for the night." She peered around at our wings to see if we spoke truth, but wasn't fazed in the least. This intrigued me even more. Most ponies outside of Ponyville still jumped at first, as thestrals were still relatively new to Equestria.

"I really don't need help."

"I do think that you should come out of the pool, Miss," Torchwood insisted. "You'll catch a chill."

"I'm comfortable where I am, thanks."

"Are you sure?"

"Arf! Arf! Arf!" We all turned to see a young sea lion barking at us from the water.

"Monty!" The mare exclaimed, practically jumping out of the water to get a better look. She realized with a look of horror that we were still here, and desperately tried to duck back down, but I whipped around at her sudden movement. I didn't believe my eyes at first. She'd successfully submerged again before Torchwood could see anything. I was frozen to the spot, eyes locked on the pool.

"Torch," I gasped.

"What?" He followed my gaze, and finally took a couple hesatant paces to the pool's edge. I was close behind, wanting one last look to confirm what I'd seen.

By now, the mare was trembling under the water, creating ripples on the surface. Even the wobbly image I found was undeniable. She was a hippocampus, a mythical merpony only thought to exist in legends.

* * *

Torchwood got over his shock much faster than I, and cast a warm smile to the hippocampus below. Since she was underwater, she wouldn't have been able to make out anything we could have said, so he offered a hoof instead. She shied away at first, but after weighing his friendly smile against her better judgment, let him haul her back up.

"You don't have to be afraid," he gently assured. "We won't harm you. Acrylic, would you go catch her sea lion? Monty, wasn't it?" The mare quietly nodded, head bowed in fright. I numbly stumbled off, still awestruck. Hippocampi weren't supposed to exist. Not even the princesses knew about them, or at least not to my knowledge. When Princess Luna had first returned from her imprisonment in the moon, I'd showed her a mural I painted of all the mythical ponies of Equestria. Back then, thestrals were still thought extinct, so I included one of them, too. Luna hadn't so much as blinked at any of the other ponies, but when I mentioned thestrals, she offered an extensive lecture about their defeat. Either she had an amazing poker face, or the hippocampi had eluded even the royal sisters for eons!

I had obediently gone to fetch the sea lion, but he had other ideas. Before I knew what was going on, I was chasing the silly thing all over the beach. I was still too numb to realize that he was just toying with me. His antics were even arousing giggles from our hippocampus friend. It was putting her more at ease, but I was too frustrated at the time to notice. When he tried escaping into the water, I'd had enough, and spread my wings to glide over the creature and snatch him before he got away.

I wasn't sure what Torch had said to the mare in my absence, but she no longer appeared fearful when I returned. In fact, she was smiling, and seemed perfectly at ease. She welcomed her pet back with a friendly nuzzle, leaving me to sit back and look on in awe.

"Acrylic, this is Kelpie," Torch informed, already sitting beside her on the rock. I was left on the sand, finally getting a good look at her. She'd come out of the pool, now poised on top for the world to see. The sun was going down by now, sending rays of light bouncing off her already glistening tail and only adding to her majesty. She truly was a picture of beauty. Her tail was long and muscular, and held a lot of power. Around where her hips would be if she had hind legs, a cutie mark of a bright blue wave behind a strand of kelp was displayed. Her fluke was a little small, being completely opaque and almost forming a round paddle shape with webbed ends. It started as deep blue close to the center, and branched out in small, wispy tendrils before fading back to lush green. Like her back, it was speckled with blue here and there. It wasn't as limp as it looked, either, because she held it upright to cradle her sea lion pup. Her whole body was the same lime green, speckled blue all the way down her back. However, I could now see that her whole lower jaw and her entire muzzle was blue, almost as though she had set her head down in paint. I was right when I noticed she appeared to have no ears; she had a webbed fin at the back of her jawbone instead, which seemed to hide a set of gills and ear slits. The blue from her jaw ran into the center of this fin, where it finally gave way to the green once more. The fin ended in three simple, straight points. Her mane was indeed buzz-cut length, but it was actually a very stubby fin running down to the nape of her neck instead of hair. This fin was completely edged in the same bright blue as her other spots, speckled a bit in the middle.

"It's good to meet you," Kelpie finally prompted when I said nothing. "I've never met land-dwellers before."

"It's good to meet you too," I echoed, finally snapping out of my trance. "I'm Acrylic."

"Yes, I know. Torchwood told me."

"Ah," I squeaked, looking between Kelpie and Torch. I didn't like the way she looked at him. Between her sugary-sweet voice and batting eyelashes, I got the impression that she was trying to flirt. He seemed a little too intrigued by our discovery for my taste, as well.

"Where did you come from?" he asked, still grinning with amazement.

"My pod lives out past the little islands," she replied. "But... I'm really not supposed to say anything," she whimpered.

"Your secret is safe with us," he assured. "Isn't it, Acrylic?"

"Sure," I agreed, a little agitated.

"What about you? Where do you live?"

"We live in a small town called Ponyville. It's pretty far from here- we had to take a train."

"What's a train?"

"Well, a train is like..." he failed to find a comparison that she would understand.

"A boat with wheels?" I sarcastically suggested. But then his eyes lit up.

"Yes! A boat for land," he nodded. "It takes ponies to places that are too far to walk."

"How does it move? There are no waves to carry it on land."

"They usually hire a team of very strong ponies to pull our trains, but I've also heard of some that run entirely on steam. I'm not quite sure how those work."

"It must be amazing, living up on the surface!" she exclaimed. "I'd love to see it for myself."

"Then why don't you ever come up?"

"Hippocampi aren't supposed to be seen."

"Is that why you were hiding?" She nodded.

"I was looking for Monty. He likes to make me chase him, and I knew it was a bad idea, coming up on land, but I was afraid he'd hurt himself in the little tide pool, so I went after him. He'd already ran back to the ocean when I got here. Then I saw you two, so I hid in the tide pool."

"We don't bite," I tried to joke. Only, my voice came out a little more spiteful than I'd meant for it to sound, and Torch cast me a scolding look while Kelpie winced.

"There was a time you and I would have done the same, Acrylic," Torch reminded. I furrowed my brow, trying to decipher his meaning. Then it hit me. Thestrals used to be 'mythical' ponies, too. Was that what this was all about? When he looked at her, did he see a new breed of pony, or somepony in the same situation we used to be in? Now that I thought about it, there wasn't a lot of difference between us. Hippocampi were probably as secluded as thestrals, if not more so. At least the Princesses remembered us, but they seemed to have no memory of the merponies. I snapped myself out of my silence before they had the chance to continue the conversation without me.

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I'm still just getting used to the idea of another pony breed."

"Oh, it's alright," Kelpie beamed, perking up instantly. "I was a little scared of you too, at first, because I didn't know you. But now I do, and you aren't scary in the least!" I cocked my head, slightly baffled by her reasoning. She barely knew us. Still, the apology seemed to satisfy Torchwood, and he turned his attention back to her.

"How long have hippocampi been isolated?"

"Oh, nopony remembers back that far," Kelpie casually shrugged. "It's always been like this."

"Why didn't you get along with the other ponies?"

"It's not that we don't get along. It's just that we belong in the water and they belong on land. At least, that's what they tell us. But I love watching land ponies! They're so fascinating!"

"Believe me, we feel the same way."

"Do you sleep underwater?"

"Of course!"

"Do you eat underwater, too? Do you drink saltwater or freshwater?"

"Well, we really don't need to drink. We filter in enough water through our gills." She brushed her head fins aside, revealing said gills. "Is it true that there are ponies with magic on the land?"

"Well, sure. There are alicorns and unicorns," I answered, puzzled. Did they really not know anything about the surface? Surely she'd seen unicorn sailors, at least. Or tourists?

"And thestrals dabble in our own kind of magic," Torchwood boasted before I could press further.

"You do? Ooh! Would you show me? Please?" Torchwood would never pass up the opportunity to pass up his fire dancing skills, but he didn't get the chance. In a flash of orange, he was bowled over, and pinned to the ground.

"Go, Kelpie, go!" the newly arrived mare shrieked.

"Hey!" I joined in, shoving her off so Torch had the chance to get up. He was back in the fight instantaneously, summoning up his fire to scare off our attacker. Kelpie saw the first sparks and called him off.

"Wait! Everypony, stop!" I was glaring at our attacker, bent in an impossibly uncomfortable position. We were so entangled in each other that neither of us knew who had been winning. "Tide, stop! These are my friends."

"You can't be friends with land ponies! You can't trust them!" I dropped to the ground like a rock when she let go. She must've held the advantage after all. Upon picking myself up, I noticed for the first time that I'd been grappling with another hippocampus. This one was bright orange, with a pale yellow underbelly and blue spots on the top of her head like Kelpie. Her eyes, however, were an even deeper blue than mine, and her mane's fin was fashioned into a mohawk, reminding me of a swordfish. It started out pale yellow, then graduating to orange and finally ending in blue streaks, just like Kelpie's. Her head fins, too, were edged in blue. Her cutie mark depicted a red surfboard, stuck upright but a little crooked. Her fluke looked nothing like Kelpie's. It was much longer and looked more like a fish. It looked a lot like her mane, though unlike the Mohawk it both started and ended with blue, streaked and spotted in an erratic pattern. It was also more on the translucent side, unlike our friend's which was completely opaque.

"They're different from other land ponies," Kelpie whimpered. "They promised not to tell."

"Oh, they _promised_, did they?" she sneered. "That's what they'll tell you. The next thing you know, they'll be crawling all over _our _islands!"

"We've kept our fair share of secrets," Torchwood retorted, back rigid and head held high. He wasn't going to look weak in front of this mare, but he didn't look too imposing either. He was standing his ground, but looked almost diplomatic in doing so.

"I doubt you've kept a secret as big as this in your whole life. Ponies like you live your own perfect lives up there on the surface. Why can't you just leave us alone and let us live out our own perfect life?"

"We've kept this exact same secret for most of our lives," I insisted. Her eyes narrowed.

"You've known about hippocampi?"

"No, we've known about thestrals."

"Bah! Everypony knows about thestrals. _I_ know about thestrals!"

"You do?"

"Everypony knows the seven pony types. We're the only ones that know about the eighth. That's us, the sea ponies."

"Wait, there are eight?"

"Duh. Unicorns, alicorns, destrals, thestrals, pegasi, earth ponies, hippogryphs and hippocampi." Torch and I exchanged glances. The orange mare looked unsettled. "What?"

"There are only five ponies," I slowly corrected. "Alicorns, unicorns, pegasi, earth ponies and thestrals. But I guess hippocampi does make six."

"What happened to hippogryphs and destrals?"

"Destrals haven't been seen in eons. They're extinct. And hippogryphs? They're just legends."

"They do too exist!" she insisted.

"Do you really think there could be another pony type we didn't know about?" Torch breathed. "We were supposed to be extinct, too. And we didn't know about hippocampi until just now."

"You're saying that thestrals were isolated, too?"

"For the last thousand years," I nodded. She seemed to soften at this. "But we came back. You can, too!"

"NO!" she roared.

"Why not?"

"We're just too different. We're not compatible."

"Aren't you even a little curious, High Tide?" Kelpie spoke. "This could be our chance to see the land!"

"That's not our call, Kelp. Let's just go home. And you should, too." She jabbed a hoof at us.

"But Tide," Kelpie whined.

"I said come on." She started back for the water, curling her tail underneath her to use it like a third leg, almost in the same manner Kelpie's sea lion did. Kelpie was no match for High Tide, and submissively crawled after her. Monty bounded ahead, racing them back to the ocean. Kelpie paused before ducking under, waving farewell. High Tide looked back at us once Kelpie had disappeared. "You two are alright," she finally decided. With that, she followed Kelpie to their home under the sea.

**A/N: I feel like this chapter was a little rushed, but there was no good way to cut it off. But after that 11 chapter wedding preparation that dragged on and on and on, I don't think you all will be too upset with me.**


	13. Chapter 13: Lost Lagoon

**Chapter 13**

**Lost Lagoon**

**A/N: There was a little confusion last chapter about the different pony types I mentioned. Hippogryphs are half pony, half gryphon, and destrals are the thestral equivalent of alicorns- ponies with horns and dragon wings. And no, I didn't make them up, I just pulled them from old myth and lore. Hope this helps.**

"Are you still thinking about last night?" I asked, joining my husband at the table. We were at a small café on the boardwalk for lunch. Neither of us had much of an appetite. Last night's events weighed heavily on both of us.

"I can't think about anything else," he admitted. "Did you sleep at all?"

"Not really. You look like you didn't catch a wink, either."

"I just don't understand," he grumbled. "We gave them the chance to come back to Equestria. To rejoin the rest of their kind! How can they just be content to stay under the water? Hidden forever?"

"Maybe we didn't talk to the right ponies."

"What do you mean?"

"The mare High Tide said that it wasn't their decision to make. Maybe they have a monarchy of their own. Maybe we have to talk to whoever's in charge down there."

"They'll never let us in. Those two were shy enough as it was. If we hadn't caught Kelpie in the tide pool, we might have never found them at all."

"So, let's go find them."

"Find _them_?"

"You know you want to. I see it in your eyes." He smiled a real smile for the first time since our encounter. "Besides, I think we're on High Tide's good side. Kelpie will definitely welcome us. Maybe the rest will be okay with us, too." Torch's smile turned into a frown.

"I don't know. You remember how thestrals reacted if even a stray colt or filly wandered too close to our borders." I shuddered. Any unwelcome visitors were usually chased off by monsters before they ever came close, but if they still didn't leave, a forest fire gave them a little extra motivation. It was harmless thestral fire, of course, but the terrified faces of those that fled jerked at your heart. It was likely that the hippocampi would take similar measures.

"Well, it's your call. But I don't think they're going to have many fire dancers on hoof to keep us away." Torch chuckled.

"Let's do it."

* * *

"I still don't see anything," I called. We'd just reached the string of islands past the beach where we found Kelpie, but we were flying at such an altitude that we were disguised amongst the clouds, lest anypony be watching.

"Of course we don't. Not from up here, anyway. We need to get down there."

"Down_ there_?"

"They're sea ponies, Acrylic! They'll be under the water, or close to shore if we're lucky. We won't spot them from all the way up here." I was uneasy at the thought of flying so close to the choppy waves. I could weave my way through a forest, but if I hit one of these waves, my huge leathery wings would drag me right down. I wasn't the most talented swimmer to begin with. He nonchalantly nudged me with his wingtip before furling his own appendages and falling into a dive. I tucked in my wings to follow, taking great care to mind my altitude. I was surprised that he wasn't more concerned. Even he was helpless out here; water would put out even magical fire.

We glided over the salty waves, which seemed to be rising higher. I, in turn, flew higher. I couldn't see anything but the occasional strand of kelp floating around in the water. Whenever I looked over at Torch, there was a set look of determination on his face. He wanted to find the hippocampi. So, I'd help him.

* * *

A head poked out from the waves, a sly grin plastered on her face.

"Jet? Hey, Jet Stream, check this out."

"Wha?"

"These jokers actually think they can find us."

"Land ponies?" Jet's eyes widened. "Land ponies! Land ponies! We've gotta tell somepony!"

"Relax," her companion huffed. "We can take care of this ourselves."

"We can?"

"Come on, Jet. Let's have a bit of fun."

"O-okay," the uneasy mare stuttered. Jet was all about having fun, but she knew that land ponies were no fun at all. Still, she ducked under the next wave after Whirl Pool. Whirl Pool was a professional. She knew what she was doing. Right?

* * *

"Don't you think we're cutting it a little close?" I called ahead. The waves were brushing my hooftips, now. We were both already soaked from sea mist, which made flying all the harder. Our wings seemed to be carrying twice as much weight with all the additional water.

"We won't find them if we don't take a few risks," he replied, turning his attention back to the sea. The waves had definitely become more violent since we'd set out, but Torch kept refusing to heed my warnings. I trusted him- he'd never do this if he thought we were in any kind of danger. I narrowly avoided a particularly large wave, swooping over it in just the nick of time.

"Maybe we should take a break," I pressed.

"Just five more minutes," he begged. "We're getting close. I can feel it!"

"You feel the salt water getting to your brain," I mumbled to myself. The crashing of waves masked my voice, and he remained completely oblivious to my remark. I sighed, and continued on. I loved him, but he wasn't without his faults. Just a few more minutes, and we could rest on dry land. Sweet, sweet dry land. An extra wing beat brought me side by side with Torch again. He scanned the ocean, and I scanned him. He seemed different. Overly determined, perhaps? I'd never seen him so set to do anything, other than marrying me, perhaps. I tried to ignore it, but I sensed a slight obsession taking hold. His eyes widened, and I followed his gaze.

"FLY!" He screamed, shooting upwards. I tried to follow, but there wasn't time. The biggest wave I'd ever seen rose up out of nowhere, right in front of us.

I was swallowed up, and about a gallon of sea water was forced down my throat. I kicked and thrashed, trying to surface. Everything was blurry with the water in my eyes. I finally broke through the water, but only long enough to replenish my air supply. I briefly heard Torch calling for me. I opened my mouth to reply just as another wave pounded down, forcing me back under. As I predicted, my wings were hindering my progress. I tried to flap them, and use them to force the water below me like I could with the air. The water pounding down proved too great, however, and it did little for my progress. Next, I tried retracting them so I didn't have to worry about it at all, but unfortunately, that required flame. As soon as they sparked, the ocean put it out. I tried tucking them in, but I was still getting nowhere.

My head and heart were both pounding, begging for oxygen. I sputtered for air, but the surface was still five feet away. My world was beginning to go dark. I still saw a little light filtering through the water, but it didn't take long for that to go out. I thought I'd lost consciousness when strong arms lifted me back out. As it turned out, the dark form blotting out the light had only been Torch, swooping in to save his damsel in distress.

"Are you alright?" he shouted over the thunderous waves. I couldn't answer, as I was still coughing up all the water I swallowed. I was too heavy at the moment for him to lift completely clear of the water, but I desperately clung onto his hovering frame. He flapped even harder, trying to drag me out. My hind legs still dangled in the salty liquid. I was too out of it to remember that I should probably pitch into the effort and flap myself. I suddenly felt a change in the direction of the water. It wasn't beating against my ankles anymore. It seemed to be hitting from the side, swirling, even. I half-consciously looked back in time to spot the beginning of a whirlpool.

"Torch," I croaked, trying to warn him. His eyes were shut tight as he fought with all his strength to drag the both of us out of the water. He didn't hear me. Even worse was the fact that I felt myself slipping. My slippery, wet coat was the cause of this problem. His was just as soaked, and neither of us could keep our grip. There was a moment of hanging in the open air before I splashed back down into the whirling vortex. He tried again to dive after me, but this time, he, too, was dragged down. I fought my way back to the surface, but Torch was on the other side of the swirling water. I couldn't reach him. My voice was going hoarse from screaming for him over the roaring water, and I was sure that his was, too.

I couldn't fight the water any longer. I finally let myself go, and it dragged me down. The world turned blue and bleary. I wasn't sure which way was up. The last thing I saw were two silhouettes paddling towards me.

* * *

"Acrylic? ACRYLIC!" My eyes fluttered open into the face of frantic Torchwood. "Are you alright? Say something!"

"Torch?"

"Yes? Acrylic, what is it?"

"This is not how I thought we'd be spending our honeymoon." I smiled up at his blackened form, nearly silhouetted by the sun. He searched my face for a moment before finally breaking down into a fit of hearty laughter. I chuckled with him, which triggered the excretion of the last of the sea water.

"Honeymoon?" a beautiful sing song voice exclaimed. I recovered from my coughing fit, finally standing and taking in our surroundings. I found the voice to belong to who I at first thought to be Rarity. The hippocampi tail instantly eliminated our unicorn friend as a possibility, however. If I thought that Kelpie was beautiful, then this mare was exquisite. Her coat wasn't actually white, but the blue tint of sea foam. Her eyes were the rich purple of a sea urchin, outlined in thick black eyelashes that could rival Rarity's, and her head fins curled into three majestic tips. She waved them around slowly and dramatically as Rarity might bat her eyelashes. She had a cutie mark that looked like a three-tier waterfall, but I later noticed that it was actually formed into the shape of a music note. What was really eye catching, though, was her mane. It was the same deep, rich purple of her eyes, and it was composed of one enormous, flowing fin. It draped over one side of her neck like a curtain, glinting with iridescent colors in the sunlight like a raven's feather. Her fluke was similarly formed, partially translucent but mostly iridescent purple.

"Oh, how romantic!" she went on. I assumed this was her normal voice, but she seemed to be singing. "I must offer you my congratulations! It's such a beautiful thing when two ponies come together in marriage. I'm not sure what your land ceremonies are like, but I imagine it was lovely."

"Um... thank you," Torch sputtered, standing beside me. His wing was curled protectively around my shivering frame.

"You didn't tell me that you were married! Congratulations!" Finally, a familiar form bounded up, sea lion fashion. Her little pet bounded up ahead of her, barking in greeting.

"Kelpie!"

"I'm so sorry this happened!" High Tide joined us, and batted Monty down.

"It wasn't your fault," Torch assured. "It was mine. I never should have gotten so close. Acrylic could have drowned because of my recklessness. We both could have."

"Don't blame yourself," I crooned. "It wasn't your fault, either."

"Indeed, it wasn't," the pale blue mare snorted. "But if I get my fins on that Whirlpool..."

"Cascade, please," Kelpie interrupted.

"Is that some sort of hippocampus expression?" I inquired. "I mean, whirlpools aren't actually living..."

"Oh, you are hilarious, dear!" Cascade burst, almost toppling off her rock when she doubled over in laughter.

"No, no. She's talking about the mare Whirlpool, who _started _the whirlpool," Kelpie explained.

"My ears are burning!" We were joined by two more forms dragging themselves out of the water. One was a cocky, pale lavender mare, with a long but ragged and torn algae-green fin-mane, streaked with light purple wisps. Her eyes were a shocking bright green, and unlike all the mares we'd seen so far, she had large head fins with four tips instead of three. Her fluke was the same color as the rest of her lavender coat, opaque and thick, until it reached the tips which were the algae-green of her mane. This edge, too, was ragged. After a lot of straining, I made out a swirling vortex as her cutie mark. A whirlpool.

"Whirlpool, what were you thinking?" High Tide shrieked.

"Oh, we were just having a bit of fun."

"Fun? _FUN?!_ You almost drowned my wife and I, and you think it's just a _joke_?"

"But that doesn't make sense," I shook my head, still fuzzy from our experience. "You two saved us. Thank you." I vaguely remembered the light form of Whirlpool, but it was the bright pink pony accompanying her that really gave them away. She was a dull magenta in color, but despite the drab coloring, she looked spunky. Her mane was made up of several individual spiky fins, longer at the front than they were at the back. The first one was baby blue, and the second was purple. It continued in a repeating pattern, blue, purple, blue, purple for every other fin. Her eyes were golden-orange, and her very small head fins actually ended in five points. Her cutie mark consisted of a string of bubbles, one of which formed a hoop. Her fluke followed a similar theme to her mane, consisting of eight spiky fins, all curled to almost form a circle. They, too, started out blue, then purple. With only four on each side, the two in the middle ended up both being purple. She was incredibly slender and lithe. Despite her wild hairdo, she was currently shamefacedly staring at the sand, drawing circles in the ground with her hoof.

"You guys didn't actually think I was going to drown them, did you?" Whirlpool indignantly snorted. "I just made 'em a little dizzy, that's all."

"Honestly, Whirlpool, I am mortified by you and your antics!" Cascade went on.

"You aren't much better, _Cascade_, with you and your siren spell."

"There is nothing magical about my siren _song_," she defended. "It isn't my fault if sailors throw themselves overboard to hear more. Besides, _I _always return them to shore, alive and well, as I'm ordered."

"Don't they look alive and well?"

"Alright! That's enough!" High Tide ordered, silencing them all with a single glare. Kelpie cowered under her authority for a moment, but remembering us, bounced right back up.

"Oh! How rude of me! I haven't properly introduced you to anypony! You already know High Tide, my sister-"

"Your sister?" Now that it had been pointed out, the matching spots made sense.

"Yes. And this is Cascade, our siren. That's Jet Stream, and this is Whirl Pool. Everypony, this is Acrylic and Torchwood, from Ponyville. There, now you know everypony!"

"They haven't met Current, yet," Jet pointed out. Everypony froze, and gave her the most horrified look I'd seen yet. "What?"

"Have you lost your bubbles, Minnow Brain?!" Whirlpool seethed. "Current will throw a fit if she finds out!"

"Finds out about what?" We were finally joined by a sixth hippocampi, and even though she was small, I felt about an inch high. She had an incredibly imposing figure. She was very dark gray, but still not quite dark enough to be called black. She had graceful, perfectly formed four-pointed head fins, and light eye shadow that was evidently waterproof. Her dark teal eyes were as cold as ice, and seemed to pierce everything she looked at. Her cutie mark depicted three ice blue wavy lines, which reminded me of the generally accepted symbol for water. Her tail was completely gray, opaque and beautifully formed, curled into a shape that reminded me of a dolphin. Her mane, however, was stunning. It was almost completely transparent, but what was visible had been stained a stunning neon blue. It was currently partially flopped onto its side, but if she was in the water, it would flow like the Princesses'. Though she was clearly much older than the rest of them, probably in her mid-thirties, her face was wrinkle-free, like it hadn't seen a smile in years.

Her gaze swept over her fellow hippocampi, and I noticed that they all seemed to shudder. When her eyes fell on us, however, I thought I'd melt from their burning rage.

"No," was all she managed to gasp.

"Current, it's not what you think," Kelpie tried.

"How could you bring land ponies here?!" she roared.

"They're not like that-"

"No, of _course _they aren't. Kelpie, this is the final straw. Your land-watching days are over. When King Trident catches wind of this..."

"Please, no, Current!" Kelpie cried. She looked like she would break down into tears at any moment.

"Save your pleas," the cold-hearted hippocampus snarled. "This has gone too far. And you two? Get out of here. _Never _come back, and never breathe a word of this to anypony, or I shall deal with you _personally_." She had ducked back under the water before anypony could say anything.

"Whirlpool, get after her," High Tide ordered.

"I don't have a death wish!"

"_Now_."

"Why me?"

"Because you're the fastest, _and _this is all your fault. If you hadn't created those waves or the whirlpool, they wouldn't even be here right now. None of this would have happened. Now go!"

"Alright, alright. I'm going," she grumbled, racing back to the water's edge. High Tide was left to comfortingly cradle her weeping sister.

"Maybe we should go," I timidly suggested. "We seem to have caused enough trouble already."

"No! Please stay," Kelpie begged.

"It isn't every day that we get to meet land-dwellers," Cascade agreed. "I must admit, I am intrigued by your culture. You must at least leave us with a story or two. Come, now. Have a seat." She gestured to the rocks, making herself comfortable on the one she already occupied. Jet Stream had remained silent all this time, but joined Cascade to satisfy her curiosity.

"Yes, please?" Kelpie voiced, wiping the last of her tears away. She eagerly bounded over to the rocks herself, and was soon joined by her sister. In hopes that a story would lift her spirits, I trod over myself, shadowed by Torch.

"Well? What would you like to know?" Torch prompted.

"Tell us how land ponies get their cutie marks!" Kelpie suggested. "Does it work the same way as hippocampi? How'd you get yours? Tell us everything!"

"Please, do tell all," Cascade agreed.

"Well, we get our cutie marks when we discover our true calling in life," Torch explained.

"Ooh! Us, too!"

"I got mine when I was just a little colt. I'd been experimenting with my powers for a while, but I finally realized that it was my special talent when I was out with a couple of friends. We were just stupid boys back then, we didn't know any better. We thought it would be a good laugh to go out and pretend we were on patrol, protecting our borders from Everfree monsters. We didn't think we'd actually find any, but sure enough, we ran right into a pack of timber wolves. We narrowly managed to get away, but we got ourselves lost. None of us could fly yet, and most of us hadn't developed night vision, including me.

"Well, it was getting dark, and the Everfree is extremely dangerous at night, even for thestrals. We were trying to find some shelter for the night, but with only two of us really able to see anything, progress was slow. Finally, somepony had the 'bright' idea- forgive the pun- to see if we could start a small fire, if just to provide a bit of light to see where we were. I was the only one who could even manage a spark. Somehow, I coaxed it into a roaring fire, which provided us with heat, light and security. I soon found that I could manipulate the flame, even carry it with us and use it like a search light. It was that light that got us back home."

"How heroic!" Cascade applauded.

"Our parents weren't happy, of course," he chuckled, "but had I not gone out that day, I may not have become a fire dancer."

"What about you, Acrylic? How did you find your calling in life?"

"Well, my talent came around a little later," I recalled. "I was getting frustrated that I was one of the last ponies my age to earn my cutie mark. I was almost in my teenage years by then, and the ridicule was becoming unbearable. I talked to my parents about it, but they just didn't seem to understand. They kept assuring me that it just needed time, but I didn't want to wait. I needed it then and there. My mother was an artist, a sculptor, actually. I thought that maybe a picture to describe what I felt could get through to her. So, I took all my pain and frustration out on a canvas. One half depicted what they thought me to be, a proud, arrogant filly, and the other half showed what I was feeling: a terrified, scared foal. I poured my whole soul into that painting. But when it came time for me to show off my masterpiece, my cutie mark had already appeared."

"Aww!" Jet cooed.

"My turn!" Cascade declared. She cleared her throat and poised herself that suggested she was about to dive into a real, genuine song. Just like I'd experienced with my friends during one of their impromptu verses, peppy, upbeat music began playing out of nowhere in perfect time to Cascade's solo.

**...**

_I was just a little girl_

_When I found this island of mine._

_Like an ocean pearl,_

_I decided it was my time to shine._

**...**

She jumped of the rock, slithering her way through the underbrush of the tropical forest as quickly as Heckley. Her friends moved to follow, and we soon found ourselves struggling to keep up. It wasn't long before we broke through to a small clearing. It was a little lagoon, lined with rocks all around, butted up against the cliff face. A gorgeous waterfall flowed in the background, depositing even more water into the pool. A single rock protruded from the water in the center of the pool, which Cascade instantly claimed. Music had been playing all this time, but now she joined back in with the lyrics.

**...**

_So I dove into this little lagoon_

_Under the bright full moon,_

_And sang my sorrows away_

_Into the sea spray._

**...**

_I sang to the sky and the stars and the sea,_

_Even the fish would agree_

_That it was a marvelous little ditty_

_Sung by me._

**...**

_And finally, in a flash so bright_

_It would scare off the bravest shark._

_Under the starlight, _

_I earned my cutie mark!_

**...**

"Wow, Cascade, that was beautiful," I complimented. Monty barked agreement upon having caught up to us, and rubbed against my leg for attention. He was so adorable I was more than willing to provide it.

"You're officially one of us," Kelpie timidly smiled. "This is our special place. We're the only ponies that know about it."

"We're honored, Kelpie," I beamed.

"What about you?" Torch inquired. "What's your special talent, Kelpie?"

"I earned mine watching you land-dwellers," she confessed. "I'm good at spying on ponies from the kelp beds," she gestured to the plant on her flank, "but I guess the wave symbolizes the surface, since you all are up there."

"And me? I'm pretty good at creating some pretty sweet waves," High Tide boasted. "I'm not too bad at surfing them, either."

"They all say I have a bubbly personality," Jet piped up. "But I'm also one of the only ponies who can maneauver through the underwater geysers. The streams are so powerful that it can be dangerous to get through if you don't know your way. But I did it when I was really little. I still can!"

"And you experienced Whirl Pool's talent firsthoof."

"See? Now you know everypony!"

"Not quite everypony. What up with that Current figure?" They all exchanged glances. High Tide finally heaved a heavy, heartfelt sigh.

"That's a long story."


	14. Chapter 14: The Secret Siren

**Chapter 14**

**The Secret Siren**

"No pony knows for sure what happened to her, but there sure are a lot of stories floating around," Cascade began.

"Some say she's a sea witch!" Jet exclaimed.

"She's not a sea witch," High Tide silenced. "She's just had a bad experience with land ponies before, that's all."

"What kind of bad experience?"

"They say she fell in love," Cascade sighed, dramatically staring off into the distance for effect.

"But he broke her heart," Kelpie finished. High Tide looked me square in the eye before continuing the story.

"Her mother was the best siren in the history of Hippocampi. River Song was her name." **(I did it again! Sorry, I just couldn't resist. Doctor Who is just too amazing.) **"River's voice could make grown ponies cry. She wanted Current to follow in her hoofsteps more than anything. So Current did everything in her power to please her mother. She dedicated her life to learning the songs, and she was good, too. One of the best. Even so, she never earned her cutie mark. That only made her more focused, and more determined to become a siren. She practiced harder than ever, but it seemed that it just wasn't her destiny. Time went on, and she grew up, still a blank flank. Even so, she was assigned a position as a Siren, given her mother's reputation, and put on guard duty.

"One day, she spotted a ship sailing pretty close to a hippocampus pod. As a siren, it was her job to sing and lure them away. She'd sung before, but this was her first time actually drawing somepony way. Her song worked only too well. He chased after her, and for the first time, she felt like she'd really accomplished something. Like all those tedious hours she'd spent practicing hadn't been such a waste after all. She still hadn't earned her cutie mark, but her feelings of accomplishment were already beginning to change. She soon realized that it wasn't pride she was feeling; she'd fallen in love.

"A siren's job is to lure the sailors away, and deliver them to shore while another team of hippocampi take their boat back to the harbor. She had to deliver the captain of the ship. Really, he was just a rugged old unicorn sailor, but in her eyes, he looked like a prince. Once she'd dragged him to safety, she should have left, but she wanted to wait for him to wake up. It was love at first sight. Once he finally did regain consciousness, the feeling seemed to be mutual. They courted in secret, coming to see each other on the beach at sunset. This went on for almost a month.

"It was a full moon, and she went to see him, as always. It was their anniversary, and he told her that there was something special he wanted to show her. She was so excited that she didn't think about what she was doing. He told her it was pretty far out on land, but he could hide her in his wagon during the trip. She agreed to go with him, but he had no intentions of bringing her back. She didn't realize it until it was too late. He ponynapped her. He was going to try and turn her into a show pony, a freak for the world to see."

"How'd she escape?" Torch gasped, eyes wide as she held us in suspense. I jumped when his voice pulled me back to reality. We were both too caught up in the story to remember here and now.

"That part's a little fuzzy," Tide admitted.

"Some say she tricked him with her siren song!"

"At any rate, after she got away, she became really sullen and holed up. They say that the next time his ship came out onto sea, she was waiting. She was so angry that she kicked up a storm big enough to sink his ship, and she earned her cutie mark doing it.

"No pony saw the survivors, if there were any. But what we do know for sure is that his ship, _The Unbridled_, is now at the bottom of the ocean. I've seen it myself. As far as shipwrecks go, it wasn't such a bad find."

"Wait, did you say _The Unbridled_? The hotel we're staying at was named after a ship called _The Unbridled!_"

"What a coincidence," High Tide muttered, lost in thought.

"That's a pretty creepy coincidence!" Jet Stream exclaimed.

"What's the story behind that ship?" Kelpie inquired.

"I'm not sure. We haven't really thought to ask," Torchwood confessed.

"We'll do that, when we get back," I decided. Torchwood nodded.

"There's no rush!" Jet chimed.

"Yes, please do stay a little longer," Cascade invited. "You must have more stories!" How could we say no?

* * *

"How do we ask about the history of the hotel without sounding suspicious?" I hissed to Torchwood. We were sitting in the lobby of _The Unbridled Inn_, staring at the unsuspecting receptionist as we gathered up the courage to pose our question.

"I don't think we're going to rouse much suspicion asking about the hotel's origins. We're curious tourists, remember? There are hundreds more just like us." He started for the front desk without me.

"Oh. Right." I hurried to catch up with him.

"Excuse me, Miss," he began, "do you have a moment?" The cheerful young mare currently on shift brightly looked up at us, a wide smile plastered on her face. She must have been new, because there would be no way I could still be so perky this time of day.

"Of course, sir! How can I help you?"

"My wife and I are tourists," he explained. I smiled and nodded as I was mentioned, and the mare nodded back, still smiling. "We heard that the hotel was named after _The Unbridled_, a ship. Is that right?"

"Yes it is, sir," she cheerfully confirmed. "It was a cargo ship that was sunk in a tropical storm around fifteen years ago. It was a rather mysterious storm; nopony saw it coming. It was really detrimental to the town, though. _The Unbridled_ was one of our main transport vessels. Anyway, one of the survivors from the wreck eventually founded this hotel in honor of the ship."

"A survivor?" Torch and I looked to each other.

"Mr. Mark is my manager," she nodded.

"Was Mr. Mark the captain of _The Unbridled_?" I asked, wide-eyed.

"No," she shook her head. "Mr. Water Mark was, however, the son of the captain Buoy Mark. His father always told him stories of merponies, and he was young enough at the time to believe them. He stowed aboard his father's ship to try and spot one the day of the storm, hiding in one of the ship's barrels. Out of all the days to sneak aboard, right? Well, when the storm hit, most of the cargo was tossed overboard, including Mr. Mark's barrel. It was probably the only thing that kept him from sinking with the rest of the ship."

"Wow," I dared to breathe. "He sure was lucky."

"He doesn't still believe in 'merponies,' does he?" Torchwood joked in an attempt to lighten the mood and pry additional information.

"Oh, of course not," the receptionist laughed. "He grew out of that long ago. Besides, I think he reasons that if there were such things as merponies, they would have stopped the ship from sinking."

"Sounds logical enough," Torch nodded, displaying an expert poker face.

"It's all so fascinating," I agreed, failing to look or sound quite as convincing as he. "I don't mean to keep you from your other customers, but maybe you know of a place where we could do some more of our own research?"

"The hotel's brochure has an article on the whole story," she informed, gesturing to the fliers laid out on the desk. "Feel free to take one. If you're really interested, you might also have some luck at the book store."

"Thank you for your time," Torchwood smiled. "You were very helpful."

"You're welcome!" she exclaimed, looking like the happiest pony in the world. I took one of the indicated fliers on our way back.

"She was definitely new," Torch whispered once we were safely out of earshot. I just giggled.

Once we'd made it back to our hotel room, we crawled onto the bed and opened up the brochure. Of course, it was nothing more than an advertisement, and only a tiny article on the back had been reserved for the history of the hotel. Most of it just boasted of the Inn's services and prestige. We learned nothing new. In fact, the receptionist had told us more than the article.

"What do you think?" I sighed, closing the brochure. "Should we try the book store she told us about?"

"That's not a bad idea," he nodded. But looking over at the clock, his whole body seemed to sink as if the last few days were finally catching up to us. It was only nine thirty, but I was just as exhausted. "They're probably closed by now. Let's call it a night and stop by first thing in the morning."

"I like that idea," I happily sighed, sinking back into the sheets. Torch switched off the lights, and we were both asleep within minutes.

* * *

"This looks promising," I said, reading the back of one of the books. He turned away from the one in his own hoof and peered over at mine.

"_Hippocampi: Ponies of the Sea_," he read. "Isn't that a bit suspicious?"

"It's like you said. We're tourists interested in the culture of Tall Tale Beach. Hippocampi seem to be a popular urban legend. And besides, it's not illegal to buy books on mythical creatures. They wouldn't sell them here if it was."

"Alright, fair enough," he chuckled. "This one is all about _The Unbridled_. It looks like it's mostly statistics and fun facts, but it looks like there are a few promising chapters."

"Great. Just these, then?"

"Unless you've found another that you _must _have," he lovingly teased.

"I'm good," I assured.

"Alright, then. I'll pay for these if you start getting the food together."

"You got it," I agreed, trotting out the store and out to the market. We'd been invited back to the hippocampi lagoon again, and since we'd probably end up spending another full day, we were going to bring our own lunch. We figured the girls would get a kick out of it, too, if we brought enough food for everypony. Of course, since we were staying at a hotel without a handy-dandy refrigerator, we had to buy the food just before we left. Fresher was probably better, anyway.

After I'd gathered enough snacks, I met Torchwood on the beach. There wasn't a pony in sight.

"Ready?" he asked, wings poised.

"Only if you are." I took off without waiting for an answer, and it wasn't long before he was up in the air, playfully chasing after me. I twirled a couple of times before I remembered that I had to mind the food. Even so, now that we had a little extra altitude and knew where we were going, the flight was much shorter than before. We found Cascade waiting in the lagoon with Kelpie. Nopony else had arrived yet.

"Ooh! What's this?" The ever-curious Kelpie asked as soon as we touched down, scurrying up to investigate the picnic basket.

"We brought lunch," Torchwood answered.

"Lunch? What's lunch?"

"It's... lunch. You know, when you eat food, usually around noon. Don't you have mealtimes?"

"Mealtimes, of course," Cascade sang, slithering up to greet us, "but we just eat when we're hungry. We don't have set times for when we dine."

"Can I have some?" Kelpie hopefully inquired.

"Didn't you hear Mrs. Acrylic, dear? We must wait until noon," Cascade scolded.

"Why?" the younger one pined.

"Because that's how the land ponies do it, sweetie. Don't you want to experience their culture?"

"Oh, alright," she grouchily consented.

"She can eat now if she wants," Torch sounded.

"No, no, no! That's quite alright, Mr. Torchwood. Kelpie must learn patience. If we are to share 'lunch' with you, we must do it properly."

"If you say so," I chuckled. She was taking lunch far too seriously in my opinion, but perhaps that really was how they saw 'land culture.'

"I trust you had a fair night's sleep?"

"We did, thank you. I hope the same is true of you?"

"Yes, it was quite restful."

"Speak for yourself!" Kelpie exclaimed. "I was too excited to get a wink of sleep!"

"Sorry. I guess that was our fault," Torch winced. I blushed, too.

"Don't worry about it. Besides, it was all worth it. I came up with a billion more questions to ask you about land life!" I shook my head in amusement. I couldn't think of a question she hadn't already asked.

"Well, ask away, I suppose."

"Wait! Don't start without us!" Jet called, crashing clumsily through the trees and tripping in time to flop into the water. I hoped she was more graceful underwater, because on land she was just as much of a klutz as Ditzy.

"Yeah, hold up!" Whirlpool was able to join us today, and sluggishly pushed her way through the brush. Land didn't seem to be her forte either.

"Where's High Tide?" Kelpie hopefully asked.

"I think she's still trying to talk Current down."

"Yeah. I convinced her to keep her trap shut yesterday, but she still might go back on her word," Whirlpool sniffed.

"Do ya think we should wait for them?"

"No need," the familiar voice called. We all turned in the direction of the rustling as High Tide's face appeared above the undergrowth. She held a bushy fern out of the way as the stern-faced mare I'd come to know as Current crawled out. Even as she sat on the grass, nose turned up, she looked important and regal. Everypony had fallen silent upon her arrival.

"So, you are the land ponies," she finally sniffed, giving us a critical look-over.

"Yes, we are. My name is Acrylic. It's good to meet you." I moved from my seat to offer my hoof to the mare. She shied away from it like it was a snake, wrinkling her nose.

"It's a land custom, Current," Kelpie whispered. "When you meet somepony new, you shake hooves."

"Like this!" Jet Stream and Cascade volunteered to demonstrate from Cascade's special rock in the center of the lagoon. I warmly stretched out my hoof a little farther to prompt her to try again. She just cast me a disdainful look, ignored my extended hoof, and moved for a more comfortable seat by the water. I released a quiet sigh of defeat, and returned to my husband. Cascade cleared her throat, if just to break the silence. Finally, High Tide spoke up.

"Acrylic, Torchwood? Why don't you tell us about how you returned thestrals to Equestria?"

"But Tide, we've already heard that one," Kelpie complained.

"Well, I don't seem to remember it very well. Please, would you tell it again?" I realized by her tone of voice that she really wanted Current to hear it. We all seemed to catch the hint after that.

"It would be my pleasure," Torch answered. The hippocampi mares all settled in to get comfortable, but Current remained as rigid and unmoving as ever. She barely blinked throughout the entire story, though the others tried to encourage her with enthusiastic 'oohs' and 'aahs' of their own. Whenever Torch asked for my side of the story, I offered it, not trying to make us sound heroic so much as trustworthy. Mostly, though, he did the speaking, and I used the extra time to carefully study Current's unchanged expression.

"And so here we are, happy and well," Torch concluded.

"Great story!" Jet applauded.

"See, Current? They kept their race a secret for years. We can trust them."

"Yet, now all of Equestria knows of their kind." Current looked like she was exerting serious effort to keep from snarling in disgust.

"But, don't you see? It was our time to return. Maybe it's time hippocampi did, too," I pressed.

"We will _never _belong on the surface," she snapped. Turning our back to us, she managed to regain her composure. "Believe me. I know."

"Current, just give them a chance," Kelpie begged.

"I did, once. That was the worst mistake of my life. It's one I never intend to make again."

"Current, please, we aren't like Buoy Mark. We'd never tell."

"How?" She whirled on me like I'd slapped her. "How dare you speak his name? How did you find out?" Next, she turned on your friends. "_What did you tell them? How could you betray my trust like this?!_"

"They didn't say anything! We did some digging around last night," I cut her off. "We worked it out on our own."

"The land world knows about me? About what happened?" she angrily cried.

"No! They don't know about you specifically."

"What do you mean, 'me specifically?'"

"There are legends about hippocampi as a species-"

"_WHAT?_!"

"They're just legends! There were myths about thestrals too, before now! Nopony _actually _believes them!"

"Then how did you know about Buoy Mark?"

"We heard a little bit here, and it was enough to piece some stuff together back at the hotel..."

"I told them." High Tide stepped forward, head held high.

"How could you?" Current's furious distress seemed even more threatening than her cold, stern face. "Out of everyone here, I trusted you the most. What have you done?"

"I think we can trust them, Current. Don't you?" Current's blazing eyes turned on me, then on Torch. I tried to make myself look as earnest as possible.

"No," she decided. "And I never will." She began to march away, but her hoof brushed the bag our newly purchased books had been placed in. The disturbance caused them to slide out and into view. The hippocampus on the cover of mine caught her eye, and she froze.

"Where did you get this?"

"I was just curious. It was at the book store and..." I bit my lip, her very presence almost causing me to burst into tears. This was the last straw. She'd finally had it with the incompetent land ponies. In one swift, furious motion, both books were kicked into the lagoon. Cascade hadn't been quick enough to save them, but now offered the soggy, ruined tomes. They weren't salvageable; the water had instantly soaked the pages, causing the ink to bleed everywhere. My heart fell.

"Get out," Current ordered.

"I think we've outstayed our welcome," Torch agreed, coming up to wrap a wing around my crestfallen frame.

"But-" Kelpie began to protest.

"OUT!" Torchwood nodded once more, cuing us both to wave farewell to the rest of them. We finally had to leave our new friends.

* * *

Torchwood had done everything in his power to cheer me up. We'd gone to swim with dolphins, which really was a treat, though I required a little more encouragement after my recent, unpleasant experience with water. Even after a rather luxurious dinner, I still felt miserable. The fact that my foul mood was ruining what was supposed to be a happy honeymoon only made me feel worse. I'd blown it. Everything had gone fine when Torchwood was talking to them, but then I had to open my big mouth and ruin all his hard work. He finally decided that maybe another walk on the beach would put me in better spirits. Of course, a walk on the beach at sunset is far more romantic than one on a sunny evening, so we waited a while.

In the meantime, we had nothing better to do than return to the hotel. We remained in the lounge, where we found a small selection of books. It was by no means a library, but we both decided to find something to read and pass the time. Torchwood seemed to have no trouble in settling on a decent mystery.

My hippocampus book had been destroyed, but I found another, smaller volume on them here. Intrigued, I plucked it from the shelf and joined Torchwood in the neighboring armchair. We were close enough to hold hooves as we read, just as a tender way to spend the time together.

"A fascinating read, is it not?" I looked over the top of the page into the face of a young blue stallion. He had sea green eyes, and a brown, matted mane. His beard was short and grizzly, as was his tail. Despite this rugged appearance, he was strangely handsome. And interestingly, his cutie mark was of a buoy floating on the water. He was a unicorn.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met."

"No, we haven't. I'm Water Mark. I'm the manager of this hotel."

"Ah. It's good to meet you, Mr. Mark." I glanced over at Torchwood to make sure he was listening. A subtle nod on his part told me he was. I allowed him to shake my hoof. "I'm Acrylic, and this is my husband."

"Torchwood," he greeted, also shaking hooves with the unicorn as it came his turn.

"It's good to meet you both. I trust you are enjoying your stay at _The Unbridled_?"

"The service has been wonderful," Torch assured. Remembering the last time I opened tried to say something 'nice,' I let him do the talking.

"I'm glad to hear it!" he enthusiastically exclaimed. He made no move to leave or continue the conversation, and I instinctively opened my mouth again.

"Would you care to join us, Mr. Mark?" Torchwood cast me a disbelieving look, and I instantly realized what a bad idea that had been. Too late, now.

"Don't mind if I do," he said, welcoming himself to the armchair across from us. He seemed to relax in the plush cushions for a moment, but then the cover of my book, displaying a hippocampus, attracted his eyes like a magnet.

"You know, my father would tell me stories about those."

"About what?" I asked, playing innocent.

"Hippocampi," he clarified. Leaning back, his eyes seemed to shine in remembrance of fond memories. "Ponies from the sea. My father was the captain of _The Unbridled_, a small cargo ship. He'd always tell me, 'Mark, my boy, they're out there. You might not see them out under the water, but they're out there. The prettiest ponies ya ever did see, with even prettier voices.' Boy, could they sing! He and his crew would sometimes get lucky enough to catch bits and pieces of a siren song out on the water. He taught me one of their songs, once. I only remember one of the verses now. It quite bothers me that I don't remember the rest. I know it went something like,

"_The blackest night, a star-speckled sky-_

"_Is it so different from pearls shining in the deep?_

"_Why does it have to be so unreachably high?_

"_I dream of swimming through the stars when I sleep_.

"Sure is a pretty tune, ain't it?"

"Oh, Mr. Mark, hippocampi are nothing more than legend. Just myths thought up by homesick sailors," I chuckled.

"Laugh if you will," he huffed, "but I know they're out there. You know, there was a time when we thought you thestrals were nothing more than myth. But here you are, in the flesh. Is it so crazy to believe in another pony breed? I'm telling you, hippocampi are as real as you are. And one of these days, I'll prove it."

"Acrylic, dear, I think we should go," Torchwood interrupted.

"Right," I agreed, standing. "It was very good to meet you, Mr. Mark, but we must be going." The colt almost seemed offended at our sudden departure.

"We're on our honeymoon, and I've promised the Missus a walk on the beach," Torch winked. At that, Water Mark eased up a bit.

"Well, I'm honored that you chose to stay at _The Unbridled Inn_ for such a special occasion. I, too, have someplace to be. The best of luck to you, and remember, if you need anything at all, we're just a call away."

"Thank you, Mr. Mark."

"What were you thinking?" Torch hissed once we were out of earshot. "Inviting him to sit with us?"

"I wasn't," I admitted. "Just trying to be polite. But as of late, that seems to get me into trouble more often than not." Torch's expression softened. Neither of us had needed such a reminder.

"Come on," he beckoned. "Maybe a walk on the beach will clear our heads."

I was taken to our own little strip of sand; the one where we'd first found Kelpie. I was unsure about it at first, since I was supposed to be trying to forget about them, but perhaps a stroll here could provide some closure.

"I'll miss them," Torch said, finally bringing up the unavoidable topic we'd both been dodging. "But they certainly gave us an unforgettable honeymoon."

"Yes, I guess there is that," I agreed. Memories of our brief time together began floating up, giving me a warm fuzzy feeling inside. The encounter had changed our world, and theirs.

"Perhaps they just aren't ready to come back. Maybe some things just aren't meant to be found."

"Maybe," I doubtfully agreed. "But we made friends with most of them. We were so fascinated by one another, I bet we could have spent the whole week learning about their world and teaching them about ours, and we still wouldn't get bored."

"Even so, we must respect their privacy."

"I know, I know." It wasn't their privacy I was meant to respect so much as Current's. Just because she'd had a bad experience before didn't make all of us bad. I was tired of being labeled as a criminal. They didn't know me. I hadn't done wrong to them. I hated that species had to be such a barrier in friendships. Just because I was a thestral, I had almost lost my Ponyville friends. I didn't want it to prevent me from making new ones.

"Is that..." Torch muttered aloud, squinting off into the distance. I could make out a dark form off in the distance, but I couldn't tell quite who it was over the glare of the sun. I shielded my eyes from the light and tried to make out who it was. It was definitely a hippocampus.

"Kelpie?" I guessed, taking a few steps forward to greet our friend.

"No." Torch held me back. "Look closer." So I squinted again and watched, waiting for the sun to hit her just right to give me just a hint at her coat color. It wasn't her coat that sparkled so much as her neon blue mane.

"Current?! But what's she doing out here? She hates us!"

"I don't know. Stay down. Let's get a closer look."

We scuttled around the boulders at the base of the cliff, using them as cover until we neared the tide pool where she came to rest. No longer was this a stern-faced, arrogant mare, but a soft, broken filly. She climbed into the pool, letting her head and hooves rest on the edge. She gazed at the sand below, sometimes flicking her tail to create a soft splash that would break the silence. I barely dared to breathe.

The first star appeared in the sky, and Current was there to greet it. When Luna raised her moon into the sky, she looked about ready to cry.

"I promised myself I never would," she quietly wept to herself. I cocked my head. She wasn't so tough as she looked, but I still didn't understand why she was out here. She sighed, seeming to lose an argument with herself. Against her better judgment, she poised herself on the rock, turned her face to the moon, and sang.

**...**

"_The blackest night, a star-speckled sky-_

"_Is it so different from pearls shining in the deep?_

"_Why does it have to be so unreachably high?_

"_I dream of swimming through the stars when I sleep_.

**...**

"_Are we so different?_

"_Must we remain apart?_

"_I'd return to you in an instant_

"_If you could have just loved me,_

"_My dear Buoy Mark_."

**...**

So this really was about a tragic love complex?

Current didn't get the chance to dive into the next verse before a bright spotlight glared down on her. The bright light temporarily blinded Torch and I, causing us both to press closer to the rock.

"Oh, is that how the song goes?" a strangely familiar voice asked.

"Buoy?" Current breathed, shielding her face from the light. None of us could get a clear look at the approaching figure. "Is that you?"

"I'm afraid not, dearie. But why don't you come with me? There are some ponies I want you to meet." Current tried to scurry away from the approaching figure, but the approaching colt proved to be quicker. He bolted to block her path, easily subduing her on land. She was pinned in an instant. "Leaving so soon? What's the rush, Current? I know my ship ain't so grand as _The Unbridled_- you know, the one you sank- but she's still a beaut." Torch started to jump to her aid, but I held him back. We needed to know what he was up to first. And, as much as I hated to admit it, there was a tiny voice at the back of my mind that didn't want to help her.

"Who are you?" she frantically cried.

"The name's Mark," he snorted in reply. "Water Mark." The hotel manager then levitated a cloth sack and a piece of rope that he promptly used to bind the mare. Resistance was futile. With his victim secure, the unicorn casually levitated his whole load into the air behind him.

I was frozen from shock. I'd just witnessed a ponynapping. _Current's_ ponynapping.

**A/N: Dun dun DUN! I do love a good cliffhanger, don't you? Also, sorry for the late update. This thing called life keeps getting in the way. But on the bright side, you don't have to wait the full week for the rest.**


	15. Chapter 15: Ponynapped

**Chapter 15**

**Ponynapped**

**A/N: Before I get to the story, I needed to personally thank ****Cadencelsaba for alerting me that my story had been plagiarized. It's being taken care of. I thought this was obvious, but DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES REPOST MY STORIES. That is illegal. Even though these are fanfictions, there are laws to protect them. Due to this incident, I now have a fimfiction account. My username is still adoptpetz. I will be updating both sites weekly. **

**Enough of that. Enjoy the story.**

"Thanks for holding me back," Torch panted, nudging me back to my senses. "That would have been an idiot thing to do. Even I don't stand a chance against unicorn magic. Now, come on. Let's go!"

"Where?"

"I'm not sure where he's taking her. We'll just have to be quiet about following him. Now let's go get our friend back."

We slunk along the beach, but it didn't take long before we came upon Mark's ship, a small vessel with the name _Rogue _printed in neat script along the side. _How fitting_, I thought to myself. It wasn't until Mark had disappeared to the helm of his ship that we glided aboard. Torch pressed close to a cluster of barrels at one end while I tried to blend with a tangle of nets opposite him. It was dark, so this wasn't too hard. I was more concerned about keeping my balance. It was a slippery deck, and I still hadn't found my sea legs.

"Oh, don't look so glum, Current dear," Water Mark rasped. I perked up to eavesdrop. When I craned my neck, I could see her tied to the helm railing, though the cloth bag over her head had been removed. "I'm going to make you famous! You should be thanking me! After all, that's all my father ever wanted for you. And how did you repay him? You sank his ship," he pressed close to her face, hissing in a voice like venom. "I'd say this is a very unfair sentence, wouldn't you? Unfair to my father. He's dead because of you, but you get off merrily singing your life away. If I had it my way, you'd have joined him by now. But this is what he wanted. Now at least I know I've carried out his last wishes."

Sorrowful weeping was the only response he received. "Come, now. If that's the only sound you'll make, you'll scare the customers away. Why don't you try a real song? A bit of practice never hurt anypony. And to be honest, I'd like to hear what you can do. My father used to brag about your talent. I'm quite eager to see what he could have possibly seen in a witch like you. Oh, and don't try anything funny. I've spent the past fifteen years perfecting a spell that will make me immune to your charms. Go on," he prompted. Still, she was uncontrollably sobbing. Even though it was dark, I could tell his face turned a few more shades of red. "SING!" he maniacally demanded, pounding his hooves into the deck beside her. She flinched so violently she almost fell over. In her terror, she didn't know any better than to obey.

**...**

"_The blackest night, a star-speckled sky-_

"_Is it so different from pearls shining in the deep?"_

"_Why does it have to be so unreachably high?"_

"_I dream of swimming through the stars when I sleep_.

**...**

"_Are we so different?_

"_Must we remain apart?_

"_I'd return to you in an instant_

"_If you could have just loved me,_

"_My dear Buoy Mark_."

**...**

"Bah! That's no good! You _must _change the ending," Mark groaned. "It's so depressing. Nopony will want to listen. Why don't you think up something happier? Go on. You sirens are supposed to be good at thinking on your hooves. Make me a peppy song, Current dear."

Just then, a particularly choppy wave knocked us all off balance. Unfortunately, this sent Torchwood careening into the barrels, causing an obnoxious racket. Even Water Mark must know a wave couldn't raise such a clamor.

"Hello?" he called, using his horn as a searchlight once more. "Who's there? Show yourself!" He moved a few paces down the helm stairway to search the lower deck. Torchwood could have kept hidden if he'd wanted to. Mark was about to pass him up, in fact, since his coat was the same shade as the wood of the boat. However, Torch decided that now was as good a time as ever to rescue Current, and lunged at the unicorn's hooves. Mark was sent sprawling onto the deck, horn flickering out like a light. Torch pounced him in an instant.

"Get Current!" he shouted to me, taking another punch from Mark. I scrambled to the helm, where Current was shocked to see me.

"What are you doing?" she gasped, obviously terrified.

"Saving your tail!" I retorted, gripping the rope in my teeth and tugging with all my might. These were sailor knots, and wouldn't come undone so easily. Okay. Time for Plan B.

With a few powerful flaps of my wings, I was hovering above the ship. Here, I tried to spark even a small flame on the tip of my hoof, the only surface that didn't seem to be wet. What little moisture there was evaporated momentarily, and I proudly coaxed the flame into existence. I bent over to touch it to the rope, lighting it like wicker. Current screamed at first, thinking that I'd set her on fire. But this was magical thestral fire. It wouldn't burn her unless I told it to. Rather, I ordered it to melt through the rope. Once she realized that she was free, our eyes locked for a moment. Now, she wasn't sure what to make of me. Friend or foe? I wasn't all that sure about her, either.

We were interrupted when Torchwood's form was hurled into mine, slamming us both against the wall. The wind had nearly been knocked out of us, but I managed to look over in time to see Current scrambling away. She had just a another yard to the railing, and then she was free.

"Oh, no," Water Mark snarled. "I've waited too long to let you go now!" A small streak of fire from Torchwood distracted him long enough for me to get to my hooves. Then I reared, bringing a crushing blow down onto the deck. This thestral trick was originally used in quarries to break off large stones, and the feeble wood of his boat stood no chance against it. The floor splintered, and the whole boat trembled. A loud splash told me that Current was gone. I understood her fear, but now _we _were left to fight _her _battle.

"NO!" Mark wailed, realizing a lifetime of work had just gone to waste. His wrath turned onto us in an instant.

"Fly!" I cried, springing up into the air.

"I don't think so," he growled, catching me and Torchwood both in levitation bubbles. I furiously kicked, but I wasn't going anywhere until Mark said so. "If you're such good friends with the hippocampi, why don't you join them?" Torch was the first to be hurled into the raging sea, and I followed just a moment after.

I tried twisting around so I could pull up the instant I was freed from his telekinetic grasp, but I was flung with such force that this seemed impossible. I hit the icy water to hard it didn't feel like water so much as hard rock, but I still started sinking. Luckily for me, there was a stray plank from the wreckage that was floating, so I grabbed on and clung for life.

"TORCH?!" I screamed. I couldn't see or hear him. I looked wistfully down at the plank, praying that he was okay. I was a very poor swimmer- it was a miracle this plank had been so close, but I doubted he'd been so lucky. Wait, where _had _this come from? I didn't remember any wreckage before now. I just had to look up for the answers I sought.

It seemed that between my pounding and Torch's fire, we'd accomplished something, because the flaming boat was finally going under. _The Rogue _was sinking, and Water Mark was going down with it. Now that he was alone, his eyes were wide with terror, realizing the weight of the situation.

"No. NO! SOMEPONY HELP ME!" he cried to the air. I couldn't if I'd wanted to. My wings were so heavy that it would be a struggle to lift myself out of the water, let alone a passenger. And besides, I was far more concerned about Torchwood.

"He's hit his head. You must hold him," a voice demanded. I whirled into the face of unconscious Torchwood.

"TORCH!" I screeched, trying to float him on the plank while keeping both our heads above water. I barely had time to turn back and see a neon blue mane whisking back under the waves. "Current?" I watched in dumbfounded amazement when the brave mare returned to the wreckage and dragged her former captor clear. I think he was too crazed from panic to realize what was going on at this point. He kept thrashing and mumbling to himself, pupils still tiny pinpricks of fear. Despite this, Current towed him back to us with her usual, ever-blank expression.

"You came back," I panted.

"I did."

"Why?"

"Because even after all those awful things I said, you still came back for me. You both forgave me for what I did. I suppose I must finally let go of the past to do the same," she gestured to the crazed pony before us, "even if it means sparing this lunatic." I almost laughed. A groan tore our attention away.

"Torch?" I gently whispered, nudging him back to consciousness. The cold waves lightly slapping his hide were what finally woke him up.

"What happened?" he grunted. Looking up into the face of Water Mark almost made him jerk back off the plank. Then, upon remembering who he was and what he'd done, he tried to scramble over and continue the fight where they left off. I restrained him, and Current pulled Mark a little farther away.

"It's okay," I assured, settling him back down. "I don't think he's going to be causing any more trouble for a while."

"I thank you for what you have done for me," Current said, bowing her head. "I can take Water Mark to shore, but I suggest you fly."

"We can't," I cringed. "The water makes our wings too heavy."

"Then I will deliver all of you," she promised, "but I cannot do so with this maniac flailing about." So Torch and I took Mark and fought to settle him between us on the plank, much to our displeasure. Finally, he quieted down, clinging to the wood like a frightened foal. Current then left us momentarily, but even through the dark water I could see the shadow of her form zipping to and fro beneath us. Her movements eventually accumulated into a gentle current that lazily carried us to shore. All of us except Current were shivering by the time we finally got back to dry land. Mark had fled from the hippocampus the second his hooves touched the sand, finally acknowledging that he was outnumbered. Torch and I, on the other hoof, lingered a moment longer.

We walked a ways out onto dry sand before we each sparked up a small flame, enough to dry ourselves off. Current waited patiently further down on the shore, letting the waves lap at her tail. Only when I was dry and warm did I return to the mare.

"Thank you," I began. "You saved our lives."

"On the contrary. It is you who saved me. I should be thanking you."

"If I may ask..." I started to form a question, but I couldn't seem to put the rest into words. Unbelievably, she almost laughed at my hesitation.

"You just saved me from being displayed as a circus act. I should think that would give you licence to ask almost anything."

"What really happened with Buoy Mark?" Her face fell, not in the dark and hateful manner that I remembered, but in a sad recollection of memories.

"I was a naive filly," she finally sighed. Her eyes shone in the moonlight as she looked up at the giant white orb as though it contained the entirety of her past. "My mother wanted more than anything for me to follow in her hoofsteps. She wanted me to be a siren just like her. I was more than willing to at least try, if that made her happy. I devoted my life to the music, and I became quite good at it, but I never earned my mark." She fondly ran a hoof over the alternative symbol now stamped on her side. "My mother's reputation and my hard-earned talent landed me a position as a siren watchpony. I was a young adult, but still a blank flank. The other mares would torment me to no end, especially the other sirens. They would tell me I didn't belong, and in truth I didn't, but I learned to ignore them. At that point in my life, I was content where I was.

"It was my first night on watch, and I spotted a ship coming a little too close to our settlement. It was my job to lure them off with a song. That I did, and it worked perfectly. The effect of the music left most of the crew asleep, but some had jumped overboard in an attempt to hear more. From there, another team of hippocampi drag the crew back to safety, and return the boat to the harbor so nopony is hurt. I was helping to undo the damage I caused, and brought one of the sailors to a secluded beach on the coast. This very one, in fact." She paused and fondly glanced over the soft outline of the cove.

"I got worried when he didn't wake right away, and stayed a while to watch. As I waited, I began to think dangerous thoughts: this colt probably had a family to return to, just like me. What if he didn't wake up? What if I'd killed him? It didn't take me long to realize that we weren't so different as I'd been led to believe. This truth led to a fixation with life on the surface, so when he finally did wake, I couldn't resist introducing myself.

"He was just as fascinated by me as I was him, and we got along fine at first. We'd meet every night here on the coast, teaching each other about our worlds. I didn't realize at first that I'd fallen in love, but that I did. It was crazy; I was a hippocampus, and he was a unicorn. I couldn't understand why we had to remain apart. Like you, Acrylic, I dreamed of uniting our kind so I would be free to carry on with Buoy. But that would never happen.

"One night, he came and said that he had something to show me. He said that it was on the land, but he could smuggle me over in his wagon. We'd only been seeing each other for a short while, and I was ecstatic. I didn't even question him, and just hopped right in. He parked the wagon just outside his house when somepony else came out to talk to him. I kept hidden in the back, of course, but I couldn't help but overhear their conversation. They seemed to be arguing about money, or rather, the lack of it. But that wasn't the issue. It was his _wife _yelling at him!" She shook her head, withholding fresh tears.

"He never told me he was married, and I felt so betrayed! I crept out of his wagon and hid in some shrubs, hoping to wait until the streets were clear to make my escape. I wept as he kept trying to assure his girl that he had a plan to get them out of debt. He wanted to show me off to Equestria, becoming rich off of the admission of my performances. She didn't believe him, but I knew I had to get out of there before he realized I was gone. I ran desperately around the city, trying to find my way back to the sea. I spent most of the night in dark alleys, fleeing his very hoofsteps. It wasn't until dawn that I finally made it back to the sea. I never came back to the surface, and I vowed never to sing again. That was what had caused all my trouble, after all.

"I spent day after day alone in my home, mourning the loss of my 'lover.' This must have caused suspicion amongst my neighbors, because it wasn't long before rumors began flying. Perhaps I was seen on the beach with Buoy on occasion, because they all seemed to know what I'd been up to. When the King caught wind of it, he was enraged. I'm not sure whether he was trying to ensure that we remained hidden or just to teach me a lesson, but the next time _The Unbridled_ set sail on his waters, he caused a storm ferocious enough to sink her, but they all thought I did it. There were no survivors. Even so, I sifted through the wreckage for days in hopes of finding something, anything. I taught myself how to manipulate the water to get the job done more quickly, which was how I finally earned my cutie mark.

"Letting go was the hardest thing I ever did. The only way I knew how to do that was to shut everything, and everypony else out. I spent the rest of my life trying to make sure nopony repeated my same mistake."

"Is that why you took to Kelpie?" I asked. Despite her cold outward appearance, I sensed a motherly attachment between the two.

"It is," she admitted. "Kelpie reminds me of myself when I was her age. I just want her to be safe. I hope you are satisfied with your answer?"

"I think we can call this even," Torch gratefully nodded.

"We are not finished yet. I was too quick to judge you, Acrylic and Torchwood. For that I am sorry. I hope you can forgive me."

"I already have," I winked. She also received a nod from Torchwood to let her know the feeling was mutual.

"Despite what I said before, I do hope you come back to see us. We may not be ready to reveal ourselves to all of Equestria, but I think that for you, we can make an exception." For the first time since I'd met her, Current displayed a genuinely warm smile, making her appear even more beautiful.

"It would be an honor."

"Then perhaps I shall see you tomorrow at the lagoon?"

"We wouldn't miss it for the world."

* * *

When Torch and I stumbled bleary-eyed back into the hotel lobby, Water Mark was waiting for us. I noticed a suspiciously familiar stack of luggage sitting beside him. Upon spotting us, he practically leapt out of the armchair, obviously still on edge.

"I want you out of my hotel," he ordered.

"What? Just like that?"

"You _ruined _my life's work! I never want to see either of your faces around here ever again!"

"If kidnapping an innocent mare was your life's work, then it was already a waste of time," Torch snapped back.

"She drowned my father! Life as a showpony would have been merciful punishment!"

"Current loved your father. She'd never have hurt him. It was the hippocampus king who sunk _The Unbridled_."

"Their... king?" he seemed to go pale, realizing his mistake.

"Turning Current's life into a road show won't fix things," I went on. "It won't bring your father back."

"But... that's what he wanted. I was just carrying out his legacy. Now I don't know what to do."

"Water Mark, you've done good things in your father's name, along with the bad. Just look at this hotel_. _You founded it in his name, didn't you? _This _is his legacy."

"Come on, Acrylic. Let's go." Torch took hold of one suitcase, and I took the other. "We aren't welcome here anymore." I expected Water Mark to look defiantly after us, but in his shame, he couldn't seem to decide whether it was best to look at the floor or us, and so his eyes ended up just darting around. I almost felt bad for the pitiful creature. After all, he thought he'd been doing the right thing by carrying out his father's last wish. I couldn't imagine life without either of my parents. If I had been left alone, would I have ended up as crazy and misdirected as Water Mark? Is that how Garble or Blaze would end up now that their birth parents were gone? I shuddered at the thought, and tried to focus solely on the here and now by following after Torchwood.

"Where do we go now?" I asked.

"You know, I'm not really sure," he admitted. "No place is open at this time of night. It must be two in the morning. Even the motel doesn't have anypony working this late."

"Well, I know of one place where we're still welcome."

"Where's that?" he looked genuinely puzzled. I smiled to try and get him to work it out on his own. "You don't mean..."

"I do."

"Out in the open? On our honeymoon?"

"Oh, come on, Torch. We're thestrals, born and raised in the Everfree! You don't mind spending one more night out in the Great Outdoors, do you?"

"Of course not. I suppose I just envisioned a more romantic honeymoon than this."

"That makes two of us," I laughed. "But if it makes you feel better, we packed our own blankets and pillows in the luggage. We won't have to curl up in a pile of leaves and moss."

"It is a little comforting," he joked. Though it was late, I found a new energy, and used the ocean's thermals to carry me to the island of the hippocampi lagoon. We lighted down beside the pool, where we deposited the luggage, and unpacked the quilt and pillows. Neatly piling the suitcases on the side, we set up a temporary camp beneath one of the trees. Our friends would sure be in for a surprise when they found us here!

* * *

"Hello? Are you alright?"

"What are they doing out here so early?"

"And what's all this stuff?" The sound of a zipper implied that somepony was probably sifting through the suitcases.

"Acrylic? Torchwood?" I groaned before groggily rubbing my eyes. I was met with the wet nose of Kelpie's sea lion pup. He licked my cheek a couple times before I managed to nudge him away. With a clear view, I could now see four more ponies inquisitively looking down at us: Whirlpool, Cascade, High Tide and Kelpie. Upon looking around, I spotted Jet Stream searching the trinkets in the luggage as predicted.

"What are you doing out here?"

"Did you... spend the night outside?"

"The greater part of it," I yawned. "We aren't exactly welcome at _The Unbridled_ Inn anymore. There was nowhere else to go... I hope you don't mind."

"Oh, you poor dears! Spending the night out here on your honeymoon!" Cascade dramatically wailed. Her cries caused Torchwood to start rousing beside me.

"Current told us what happened," Kelpie spoke.

"How is she?" I asked.

"It's so odd," High Tide grinned. "I expected her to get real upset, or try to forget about it, but... well... just look for yourself." She pointed to the pool behind me, so I turned. On Cascade's usual perch in the middle of the lagoon sat Current, fiddling with an exotic white flower bloom and humming pleasantly to herself.

**...**

"_The blackest night, a star-speckled sky-_

"_Is it so different from pearls shining in the deep?_

"_Why does it have to be so unreachably high?_

"_I dream of swimming through the stars when I sleep_.

**...**

"_Are we so different?_

"_Must we remain apart?_

"_I think you're magnificent_

"_Different though you are._

"_I think from our friendship_

"_We can form a new start."_

**...**

"_I do not fly and you may not swim,_

"_But let's just go out on a limb._

"_It might be crazy, but I think this can work._

"_I don't care what they think-_

"_They can call me berserk!"_

**...**

She found her own verse incredibly amusing, and fell into a fit of childish giggling.

"She's been like that all morning," Whirlpool whispered, failing to conceal her own laughter. Torch chuckled beside me.

"That's certaintly an interesting way to wake up."

"Good morning," I greeted with a light kiss.

"Oh, good! You're awake!" Current exclaimed, slithering out of the pool to join us. "I must admit, I had an ulterior motive when I asked the both of you back. I felt so bad about ruining your books. I'm afraid I cannot replace them, but I hope this comes close." She pulled out a book of her own, this one made from thin wooden planks bound together with seaweed, the words etched lightly into the wood. It looked like a history book on hippocampi as a nation.

"Current, I... I don't know what to say! This is better than any book we could've gotten up on the surface! Thank you!" Her whole disposition radiated with pleasure.

"But again, keep it to yourself?" Tide prompted, astonished that Current would just give away information just like that.

"It'll be our little secret," Torch promised. She nodded approval, and let the subject drop.

"If you were kicked out of the hotel, where are you going to stay tonight?" Kelpie asked, concern peeking through in her voice.

"I'm sure we'll find someplace," my husband assured. I nodded.

"There must be one hotel we can get into."

"But it's tourist season. They're usually pretty full around now." The others looked to the green mare in astonishment on her already extensive knowledge of the land world. "What? I just noticed that it always seems pretty busy this time of year."

"It is. And that's the problem."

"We might not be able to find another hotel that can take us," I explained.

"We may have to go home."

"So this might be the last time we see you?"

"But you still have another four days of your honeymoon! You can't just cut it short!" Cascade exclaimed. "No, this won't do."

"It's okay," I assured.

"We talked about it last night," Torch said, "and we decided that even if this is our last day here, it was the best honeymoon a couple could ever hope for."

"Thanks to you all," I added.

"Aww!" Jet cooed with a giant smile plastered on her face.

"We'll all miss you so much!" Kelpie sniffed, moving in to give us a goodbye hug.

"There was so much more we could have learned," Tide agreed, giving Torch a rough yet fond pat on the back.

"You're all acting as if they really have to go," Current cheerily sighed. "We're all assuming they won't be able to find someplace."

"Current's right. We might be able to stay. I'm just trying to be realistic."

"_I'm _saying that you _can _stay, because _we _have a place for you."

"We do?" Whirlpool looked baffled.

"Of course we do! Don't you remember that cove you girls used to play at before we came inland?"

"That was years ago!" Whirlpool exclaimed, seeming to recall such a place.

"Oh Current, you're absolutely brilliant!" Cascade squealed. "You could stay there and not have to pay for a hotel! We'd be nearby, and you could still visit the mainland as you please! It's only a flight away for you, after all."

"Oh, please say you'll stay!" Kelpie begged. I turned to Torchwood.

"What do you think?"

"I think we should do it," he smiled. I wasn't about to argue.

* * *

It was a beautiful cove, redecorated just for us. I wasn't sure when Whirlpool and Cascade had slipped off to get it ready, but that they did. This exotic paradise couldn't compare to that dusty old hotel room. Palm trees lined the beach, dancing gently in time to the salty ocean breeze. A small cluster of these were off to the side, between which two hammocks had been strung. Flower petals littered the beach, some of which may have been blown by the wind, but most of them I assumed had been deliberately placed. A washed up log on the sand would serve as an adequate bench for us to watch the sunset together.

"Well?" Current prompted.

"It's perfect," Torch hummed, fondly nuzzling me.

"Thank you so much!"

"Come on, girls. Let's let the two love birds settle in," Cascade merrily sang. They all slithered happily off back to the water, waving before heading to their own homes. Torch and I waved back, left to the company of one another. So maybe our honeymoon hadn't gone exactly as planned. It was still perfect. I wouldn't have it any other way.


	16. Chapter 16: This isn't Goodbye

**Chapter 16**

**This isn't Goodbye**

"Do you really have to go?" Jet pined, miserably watching us gather our few belongings back into the suitcases. Monty whimpered agreement from beside her.

"Of course they do," Kelpie coolly replied. "They have friends elsewhere. It would be selfish to keep them here with us."

"Thank you for understanding," Torchwood gratefully hummed.

"We'll miss you, but you have to go home."

"And just because you're leaving doesn't mean our friendship has to end here," Cascade pointed out.

"Never," I agreed.

"Wait! Before you go, we all got you something." Whirlpool brought forth a small makeshift pouch of loosely woven seaweed. She dropped it on the ground before us, and the bundle's contents were revealed.

"Well... more like _made _you something," Kelpie corrected. The first thing that caught my eye was a bright pink flower lei, crafted from exotic looking orchids and braided with seaweed and shells. The other wasn't quite as noticeable; it was a necklace of twine, possibly even trimmed from a fishing net, with a single wooden charm strung on it. It looked hoof-carved into the shape of two hippocampi curled into a hoop as they chased after each other's tails. Tide wasted no time in sliding the lei over my head, and Kelpie gave the wooden charm to Torchwood.

"I didn't think you'd wear the flowers," she blushed.

"It's perfect," he smiled. I now recognized that their 'flirting' was nothing more than friendly conversation, and smiled back.

"You didn't have to do that. Your friendship is the best gift of all," I sniffled. "But thank you. I'll always keep this."

"I don't think it'll last that long," Cascade sadly chuckled. "The flowers will wilt."

"Twilight probably knows a preservation spell," I countered. I was finally breaking down, and Cascade moved in to give me a farewell hug. We all exchanged our goodbyes, almost everypony but Torch in tears. Even so, my big tough stallion tenderly returned the embraces of all our new friends. Monty pushed through to get in on the action too. Current was perhaps the most disheartened by our leaving.

We could delay our departure no longer if we were going to make our train. Torch carried one suitcase, and took off into the air. I followed with the last of the luggage, and we hovered a moment longer to wave one last time. They all waved back, Kelpie almost frantically so. I felt a good thermal billowing up under my wings, and recognized that it was now or never. I didn't need to warn Torch; he'd felt it, too. We let the wind effortlessly carry us back to the mainland.

"I'll miss them," I sighed.

"They are good friends," my husband agreed. "But we'll see them again."

"You think so?"

"I've already started planning our next vacation," he winked. I found myself beaming.

"I think I like where this is going."

**A/N: Would you like to see the hippocampi girls come back in their very own mini-series? It would be set before Secrets of the Everfree, and would follow an 'episode format' where each chapter is its own adventure, building up to the larger plot. The best part? You get to decide where the story goes! Message me your ideas and I'll pick the best ones. (You'll receive credit, of course. Nothing morbid or dark, please, and not until I actually decide whether or not I'm going to write it.) A poll is now up on my profile. Vote now!**

* * *

There wasn't much more conversation during our flight, mostly due to how short its duration was. When we touched down at the train station, however, we were able to continue. The attendants took our luggage, and due to the bustling noon hour, we struggled to find a private car. We finally managed to get a mostly empty carriage near the back. This forced our conversation onto everyday topics until the couple ahead of us got off. Once they left, I was free to pull out the book gifted to us by Current. Torch looked over my shoulder, and I moved it to where we could read together.

"You know, I've been thinking about something Tide said. Do you remember the first time we met? She insisted that there were eight pony types."

"I remember that," I nodded. "It was so strange. They hadn't realized thestrals left in the first place!"

"Right. But what if there was something to what she said? What if there were eight pony types? Thestrals were once thought extinct, and there is no record of hippocampi, either. Who's to say there really aren't others?"

"You think that there might be more pony types out there?"

"It's an intriguing thought, anyway," he shrugged, looking out the train window. "I just hate the thought of there being others out there, left in the dark. Hippocampi remain hidden by choice, but what if there are others cowering for their lives as we once did?" I cringed in sympathy. I knew how relieved he was that we didn't have to keep our wings a secret anymore. Once he'd been content to remain isolated amongst our own kind, but after making friends with so many in Ponyville, he just couldn't be satisfied with the Everfree. Nor could I, for that matter.

"There's a good chance she was right, though. If hippocampi really have been isolated for that long, they've probably done a much better job of keeping their history intact, especially if they haven't even come ashore to update it. They remembered us, after all, and destrals. Maybe there really are hippogryphs, or at least used to be. Either way, it couldn't hurt to look into it."

"You really think so?" His eyes gleamed at the prospect.

"Nopony else really knows of the possibility. Sure, there might be the crazy fanatics out there, but there's no one to take it seriously."

"You do know why that is, don't you? All those 'crazy fanatics' are viewed as obsessive nut jobs. That could be us, if word got out we were trying to find mythical creatures."

"This could be our responsibility. And as for our reputation, no one is going to care. We all have our quirks; that'll be ours. Just look at Pinkie! She has more friends than anyone I know, and she's the quirkiest of all! And hey, maybe there are others the hippocampi never knew about. You remember the myths about the aponies?"

"I always thought they were the same thing as breezies," he cocked his head.

"Some ponies believe they're one and the same, but I always liked to think they were two separate breeds," I replied, beginning to speak faster from sheer excitement. "Breezies work with pollen, but I think aponies are more about the flowers themselves."

"Centaurs? Sleipnir? Flutura? I wonder if the Ice Shetland legends are true? And what about the sand sprites?"

"Who knows?" I giggled. "The possibilities are virtually endless!"

"Every story has its end," he reminded me, "but I want to discover this ending with my wife."

"And I with my husband." He kissed my nose, and I retorted with one to the lips. One of the train attendants walked in just then, and his face turned red upon realizing he'd walked in on two lovers.

"Oh! I... erm... My apologies. Next stop is Ponyville," he sputtered.

"Are we here already?" I exclaimed, looking out the window. Indeed, familiar terrain was already upon us.

"Thank you, sir," Torchwood called, finally prying himself away from me. The attendant looked relieved to be out of that situation, and hastily shut the door. I finally had to put the book away, and Torchwood gathered our belongings. The next thing we knew, it was time to exit the train. Even after that amazing honeymoon, it felt great to be home. I breathed in the familiar, comforting small-town air.

"You're BACK!" I heard somepony screech before I was tackled.

"Yes, we're back, Pinkie," I groaned. I didn't even have to open my eyes to recognize the peppy pink mare. Torchwood nudged her off and lifted me back to my hooves.

"So how'd it go? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

"It was amazing," I breathed.

"An unforgettable honeymoon," Torch agreed.

"Granted, it wasn't quite as romantic as I imagined..." I went on.

"And I didn't get you to myself as often as I hoped..." Pinkie's face, for once, seemed to blank from confusion, but she still tried to smile through our ramblings.

"...But it was perfect, nevertheless," I finally concluded.

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Well, that's great!" Pinkie enthusiastically bounced. "We missed you so much! Blaze and Heckley were both going to stay over at the library, but Owlaliscious didn't get along with Heckley so well, so Fluttershy's watching Heckley for now."

"Oh, no! Was everything alright?"

"Everything's fine! I think he liked it better there anyway. Twilight's a little skittish around snakes, but Fluttershy gave him special treatment. And Blaze had a good time staying over at Twilight's, but he'll be glad to go back home too."

"He _was _alright?" I fretted. This was the first time he'd stayed away since I 'adopted' him. I was sure he'd done it before back with the dragons, but he was my responsibility now, so I worried.

"Oh, he was fine. He and Spike wanted to try and keep Art Life open for you, but Twilight convinced them she needed extra help at the library."

"Good," I breathed relief.

"You're back!" A stampede of hooves pounded against the wooden boards of the train station, and we turned to greet the rest of our friends. Not only had Rarity, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and our dragon friends come to greet us, but Mr. and Mrs. Cake had joined them.

"Acrylic!" Blaze pushed his way to the front and caught me in the biggest 'welcome back' hug he could manage. I fondly nuzzled him, and then he scurried around to climb not on my back, but Torchwood's. I was thrilled that he was finally accepting him.

"It's good to see you again," Mr. Cake smiled, more to Torchwood than me.

"You too, Carrot," Torch grinned, sidling up to his buddy. I refrained from physically jerking- hearing Mr. Cake's first name aloud caught me off guard. Almost no one but his wife called him Carrot. It took everypony else a moment to catch on, too.

"How was it?"

"Did you have a good time?"

"Whoa, whoa," I laughed, trying to shush them all.

"You _must _tell us all about it!"

"Now, Rarity," Mrs. Cake scolded. "What happened on their honeymoon was their business. It's a personal affair. Believe me, if they want to let ya in on it, they will."

"Oh, I suppose," the disappointed white unicorn sighed. Mrs. Cake didn't seem to be paying her any mind, caught up in her own thoughts. Then she began to giggle to herself.

"You remember our honeymoon, dearie?"

"How could I forget?" her husband chuckled. I smiled. They shared secrets within those memories. I now shared similar secrets with my husband. It was little things like that which we would always cherish.

"Well, what're we all still standin' round here for? I bet y'all wanna get settled in after bein' gone so long an' all," AJ voiced. All our friends hummed agreement. I had to agree that it would be good to be home again. I reached for the luggage, and with Blaze on board, Torch led me back to our home. Our train accompanied us until we got to the base of the hill, chattering the whole way.

"Welcome home!"

"Mom!" It was my mother who came charging down to greet us. My father was a few seconds late, but made up the lost ground in a heartbeat. My parents were moving out to give us newlyweds a chance to settle in together, but still offered to watch the house while we were gone.

"Welcome back, honey," Dad greeted, smiling as wide as I'd ever seen.

"Hey, Dad," I beamed, letting him welcome me into a hug.

"Hello, sir," Torch proudly nodded.

"Ah! What did I tell you about 'sir?' We're family now, Torchwood. No need to be so formal." He promptly swung a wing around Torch, almost smothering Blaze in the process. My baby dragon batted the wing away to remind my dad that he was still there. "And you, young lad," Dad smirked, turning to Blaze. "Would you like to show your mother what we've been working on?" I froze. _Mother?_ I'd treated him as my son up to this point, but this was the first time it had been spoken aloud. The mere thought made my heart flutter with joy.

"Okay!" Blaze readily agreed, not even noticing the slip of tongue. Most of my friends caught it, and just smiled.

"Honey, why don't we let them settle back in first? They must be exhausted," Mom gently suggested.

"Oh, my girl's got more fight in her than that! And it'll only take a minute."

"That's alright, Mom," I assured. "We've always got time for Blaze." My little dragon blushed.

"Come on, then. Out here, this way. Come on everypony. That means you too, young ladies."

"Ooh! Field trip!" Pinkie sang as the rest of them were invited. She happily bounced along ahead of the others. Torch tightened his wing around me just a little, winking as we began to walk. I knew he was referring to the 'mother' comment. He was as proud as I.

I looked to Blaze and then to Father in hopes of figuring out where we were being led. Even Mom was wearing her best poker face. I rolled my eyes and gave up with a sigh. I'd find out soon enough.

Our train stopped at the edge of the Everfree, not too far behind the house. Dad parked us a good ways away from the tree line, but continued ahead with Blaze.

"What _are _they doing?" I wondered aloud, silently begging Mother for answers with the look in my eyes.

"I don't know," she fibbed, refusing to meet my gaze and watching them instead. I gave a disappointed huff and did the same. Twilight and even Spike also seemed to know what was going on, but neither said a word. Everypony else was as clueless as I.

Dad returned momentarily, without the hatchling.

"Where's Blaze?" I narrowed my eyes.

"Just watch." Dad gestured to the Everfree. I had to squint to make out the speck of orange at the top of the highest visible tree. My eyes bulged.

"Blaze!"

"Wait, just wait," Dad held me back before I could throw a fit. Blaze couldn't fly. What if he fell? He could seriously hurt himself!

I didn't get the chance to even try and intervene before Blaze flung himself from the topmost branch. "BLAZE!" I screamed again. I finally broke free of my father's grip and zoomed across the ground to catch him. I finally came to my senses when I realized it was taking much longer than usual. When I looked up again, Blaze was peacefully, even happily, soaring above me. "You're... you're..." I breathed, still flabbergasted. Then my lips curled into the widest smile I'd managed since the wedding. "You're gliding! You're really gliding!"

"Whoo hoo!"

"You go, Blaze!"

"Bravo!"

"Awesome!"

"Yay!"

At this point, we were all running along below, encouraging him. Rainbow even went as far as to join him in the air, providing an extra draft for him to catch and elongating his flight. He was exhausted by the time he landed, but he'd never been so proud. I scooped him up in my forelegs as soon as I caught up. "I'm so proud of you!"

"That was so amazing!" Spike wheezed, catching his breath after our sprint. He curled his claws to give Blaze a fist bump.

"I'm not... quite to... flying yet..." Blaze panted.

"But that was still fantastic!" Torchwood insisted.

"Young owls first learn to fly through a process called branching to help them strengthen their wings," Twilight recalled. "It's very similar to what you've been practicing recently, Blaze. This is an excellent start, Blaze. You'll be flying in no time!"

"You really think so?" he hopefully beamed.

"_I_ know so," I giggled, nuzzling him one more time.

"Don't you worry," Dad proudly boasted. "He'll be up in the air soon enough, if I have anything to say about it."

"Dad," I playfully warned. It was great that he wanted to help, but I was worried that his training drills might be a little hard on my little boy. He took the warning lightly and just chuckled.

"You know what this calls for?" Pinkie exclaimed.

"Don't you think a party's a bit overkill?" Rainbow asked.

"I was just going to suggest cupcakes, silly," the crazy pink mare giggled.

"Even I won't turn down a cupcake."

"Hear, hear!"

"I'm buying!" Dad declared.

"No, no, no!" Torch pleaded. "This is your victory, too. You trained Blaze, now let us get the bill."

"No can do, son," Dad insisted. Torch wasn't going to give up so easily. I sighed and let them argue over whom was treating who, and let Blaze climb up onto my back.

"You did good today," I quietly called back." I wasn't sure if he was trying to sleep or just recline, but I felt him fashioning my poofy mane into a more comfortable bed. The effort to remain in the air so long must have really drained him.

"Thanks," he replied, finally settling onto his back. He took care not to let the spines on his neck poke me. "You think Garble will be proud?"

"I'm sure he'll be impressed," I nodded.

"Good," he yawned, a note of satisfaction in his voice. "I need to prove to him that I can be just as much a dragon as he is. And to you, too."

"Honey, you don't have to prove anything to me," I tried. But he was already asleep.


End file.
